


Let Me Go

by Aehryn



Series: If You Love Me [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Cheating, Human Trafficking, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-09
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2019-01-15 10:19:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 10
Words: 30,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12319065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aehryn/pseuds/Aehryn
Summary: Naruto Uzumaki was always applauded for his honesty and optimistic lifestyle. Until he gets involved in the lies and the path of Sasuke Uchiha's self-destruction.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, I'm tentatively back with a new story. Let me know what you think in the comments and whether or not it's interesting enough to continue! If so, I'll be updating this weekly and the story will have 10 chapters. Enjoy!

Sasuke awoke to an obnoxious alarm ringing next to his head. Sunlight burst through the bedside window causing him to squint as the room spun. Dark navy sheets were sprawled on the ground next to the bed and beside Sasuke lay a naked gray-haired, shark-faced teen boy.

"Fuck, Sasu', are you gon' answer that or what?" The naked teen groaned with his head buried in a pillow, his words slurring together. It took Sasuke a moment to realize it was not an alarm but his phone ringing.

Sasuke opened his mouth scold him for calling him ‘Sasu' but his mouth was so dry that a cough came out instead. Quickly, he reached for his phone and ignored the incoming call. Within seconds, however, the phone started to ring again fervently. This time he checked the caller ID, it was Sakura – his girlfriend. 

"Shit." Suigetsu knowingly snickered, his face still planted in the pillow.

"Hello?" The miserable teen croaked into the phone. 

There was a pause on the other line, probably because she didn't recognize the voice of her currently hungover boyfriend. 

"Did you ignore my call?" Sakura asked testily once she was confident it was him.

"No. Pressed the wrong button." Now Suigetsu rolled over onto his back to watch Sasuke lie to his girlfriend with a sly smirk.

Sakura seemed to accept this response and continued, "Where are you?" There was a hint of agitation in her voice.

"In bed, I just woke up." Sasuke drawled, letting his feet dangle off the bed as he slowly made an effort to get up. Suigetsu started playing with the younger teen's hair.

"Sasuke, it's almost 1 pm!" Sakura sighed, exasperated. 

"And?" Sasuke countered, shoving the shark-faced teen's hand away from his hair.

"And you promised you'd be at Intermezzo to meet my best friend at one, remember?"

At the reminder, Sasuke wanted to crawl back in bed even more. 

"Fine. I'll be there in 15," not bothering to hide his irritation as if he hadn't already committed to this previously.

As he said goodbye and hung up the phone, he heard Suigetsu snicker once more. "Hot date with the girlfriend?" Though the only response he got out of his affair was a pillow to the face.

After slipping a pair of briefs on, Sasuke went to shower. It took only minutes for Suigetsu to follow him in, not bothering to hide his nakedness. They showered quietly, Sasuke swatting Suigetsu's wandering hands with a warning glare, clearly not in the mood for another round.

Ten minutes later and Sasuke was mostly ready to leave the house. However, Suigetsu was still sitting on his bed looking expectant. "What?"

"Are you taking me to meet the girlfriend?" Suigetsu cackled.

"You're lucky I let you stay this long – get the fuck out," Sasuke scowled as he shrugged a t-shirt on.

With Suigetsu gone, the house fell into its normal emptiness. Kakashi, his adoptive father, was unexpectedly working this weekend so he had the full run of the house.

Having lost his driving privileges for some shitty reason made up by Kakashi, Sasuke began the walk to downtown Konoha. It was only 20 minutes, however, and he was rather glad for the excuse to be even later than he already was. 

The fresh air felt good on his face and a freshly lit cigarette found him renewed. Well, as renewed as one could expect after a night of sex, drugs and heavy drinking. 

The young teen's stomach growled the whole way to the cafe and for a moment he thought he would vomit on the street. As he approached the Italian coffee shop, he spotted Sakura and her "best friend". Had she mentioned that her best friend was a boy? He couldn't remember. Not that he was jealous or anything.

Sasuke stopped for a moment to observe. The strange boy was tall, blond, and entirely way too energetic. Not to mention, totally in love with his girlfriend. "Great," he mumbled under his breath as he walked into the café.

Sakura all but squealed when she saw Sasuke approaching their table in front of the window. She greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. "Sasuke, this is my best friend Naruto," She excitedly gestured from her boyfriend to the blond named Naruto.

"Nice to meet you, Sasuke!" Naruto called cheerfully, much to Sasuke's annoyance.

Sasuke took the seat between the two and immediately felt like a third wheel. He mostly watched as his girlfriend and the strange blond talked about inside jokes and middle school stories. During these stories, Sasuke stared at the menu trying to decide what wouldn't make him barf and contemplated whether Sakura was anticipating him to take care of the bill. 

"Sasuke," Sakura called, "Did I tell you Naruto will be coming to Konoha High starting in the Spring Semester?" 

"No, you didn't," Sasuke said, trying to feign interest. The look on Sakura's face clearly meant that she had, in fact, told him before.

Naruto nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah, I was homeschooled but I finally convinced gramps to let me go to public school this year."

"What a dream," Sasuke said sarcastically, Sakura nudged him under the table.

"Maybe we'll all have classes together!" Sakura sang as the waitress approached to take their order.

"One can only hope," Sasuke grunted. He nearly sighed in relief when he could finally order his coffee. He needed caffeine…and a cigarette. 

The pink haired girl gathered her purse abruptly, "I have to use the restroom real quick. I'll be right back!" 

Sasuke could see Naruto fidget anxiously, having caught on to Sasuke's sarcasm earlier.

The brooding teen watched the bathroom door shut behind his girlfriend before turning his attention back to the perky blond in front of him. "So, Naruto…How long have you liked Sakura?"

Naruto's blue eyes narrowed suspiciously, "What do you mean? We've been friends for like 4 years now…"

"Please," Sasuke snorted, "I see the way you look at her – you like her. More than friendly like."

Immediately, Naruto's face burned bright red and averted his gaze from the other teen. "I do not!" He denied but they both knew he was lying. He coughed before continuing, "Seriously, Sasuke, you don't have to worry about it. We're just friends. All she talks about is you."

Sasuke's smirk only grew, "It's cute that you think I'm worried." 

He flicked a cigarette between his fingers and was about to light it when the waitress arrived with a disapproving look. 

"Do you even like her?" Naruto huffed, a deep frown on his face. It was obvious that Sasuke was not interested. 

The only response he got from the hungover teen was an indifferent shrug.

Just like that, Sakura was back. "Getting along?" She asked, her voice perky and hopeful. 

Naruto faked a smile and nodded. "I'm so relieved! I knew you'd be great friends." 

Sasuke merely smirked at the blond from across the table, his arms folded across his chest.

Regardless of how well Naruto initially bluffed, the outing was significantly awkward after Sakura's return. So much so that Naruto excused himself after he was done with his own coffee. "Er. Sorry, Sakura. I have to go. Tsunade wants me back home," the words came out forced and it was obvious that he was lying. If Sakura noticed, she didn't let on. She looked disappointed and hugged her best friend around the shoulders. "Aw, alright. See you soon!" The blond merely half-heartedly waved at Sasuke.

As soon as Naruto left the coffee shop, Sakura turned on him looking irate. "What did you say to him?" So she had noticed.

"Nothing," Sasuke shrugged, sipping his coffee.

This response only made his girlfriend angrier. "I know that's not true." 

"He likes you." Sakura's face turned bright red at these words, her mouth dropping open. "It's obvious."

"We're best friends!" Sakura spat. "He does not like me. He was so excited to meet you!" At this point, it sounded more like she was trying to convince herself though.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "Guys and girls can't just be friends." 

"How original, Sasuke." Sakura scowled. It was her turn to roll her eyes. "Are you jealous?" She raised an eyebrow.

Sasuke snorted, "Of him? No. He's a dimwit." 

"Excuse me?" Sakura's voice shook a little. Clearly, she was hoping he was jealous.

"Yeah," Sasuke was spurred on when he noticed the effect he was having on her, "He's a fucking idiot." 

"You are jealous," Sakura laughed.

Something about the blond made him irrationally angry but it was not jealousy. In fact, it was interesting that Sakura was blind to almost everyone's feelings toward her – from Naruto's obsessive crush to Sasuke's platonic indifference. 

Decidedly tired of the arguing, Sasuke placed cash on the table to cover the coffees and uneaten sandwiches and got up to leave.

"Sasuke?" Sakura called as he moved to leave. "You're leaving me here?" Her voice was so loud now she was practically yelling.

Sasuke knew it was cruel but still left his girlfriend standing behind the table. He could not bring himself to care in his hungover and wired state. 

Sasuke didn't know why it was so hard to be a "good" boyfriend. Sakura was easily the most attractive girl in his school and had the highest marks in their grade. By all accounts, he should be happy. However, when she had asked him out, he only agreed to placate the girl. She was utterly oblivious to his indifference though. 

Konoha was a small city surrounded by forest, nestled between mountains. Kakashi's modest house was in a complex just outside of downtown so it did not take long for Sasuke to make it back. The complex was rather tranquil, only disturbed by the mail truck rumbling outside the mailboxes. 

"Fucking shit," Sasuke groaned as he tried to fish his keys from his pockets only to realize he locked them inside. He leaned against the door to their condo and unlocked his phone.

‘When will you be home? I locked myself out," Sasuke texted Kakashi. 

Unsure of when his guardian would respond, Sasuke decided to waste time at the local park. He had only ever been to the park on the occasional drug deal. Today, it was empty besides the two boys on the playground, their mom watching from a short distance away. 

The cell phone buzzed from inside his coat pocket. ‘4 o'clock. Sorry, Sasuke. Gai is home. I let him know you're on your way over.'

Sasuke rolled his eyes and lit a cigarette before dramatically collapsing on a hill that overlooked the playground. There was no way he'd stay at Coach Gai's house for 2 and a half hours. 

‘I don't need a babysitter.' Sasuke texted back and shoved his phone back in his pants pocket. He could feel the wet earth dampening his jeans but didn't care. The phone buzzed again but Sasuke decided to ignore it. It was probably just Kakashi nagging at him. 

There was something about the faint noise of the kids' laughter and the cool breeze that soothed Sasuke to sleep. When he woke, the sun was setting, his pants damp and he was thoroughly disoriented. 

"What the hell?" Sasuke groaned and struggled to sit up. He moved to check his phone but found it ran out of batteries. 

The two boys were now gone from the playground. In their place was a group of teens gathered around the merry-go-round. 

Taking the sunset as a sign Kakashi would probably be home by now, he made his way back.

As he knocked on the door, the quick footsteps sounded ominous and Sasuke knew he'd be in trouble. Kakashi's worried expression was tinged in fury.

"Evening," Sasuke grunted and ducked under Kakashi's arm that was propping the door open. 

"Where were you?" Kakashi shut the door quickly and turned on his ward. "I called you five times. Your phone was off." The look on Kakashi's face as well as how he was dressed forced Sasuke to hold back laughter for a second. Kakashi was still wearing his clothes from work but over his striped button-down shirt he wore a stained, light blue floral apron, an oven mitt was cradled under his arm. 

"I fell asleep at the park," Sasuke said lamely from his spot on the stairs. 

Kakashi checked his watch, "It's 6:30." Sasuke couldn't hide the surprise from his face. Had he slept for that long? "Why was your phone turned off?"

"It died," Sasuke shrugged.

The look on Kakashi's face was very familiar to Sasuke. It was a fusion of frustration and worry. "What if something happened to you?" Kakashi asked sternly.

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "Like what?" He was too hungover to entertain Kakashi's fatherly anxiety. "I'm 16, I can take care of myself."

"Clearly not," Kakashi scolded and pushed Sasuke's house keys into his hand.

The two lived together since Sasuke was around 12 years old. It's not like he hadn't done worse things than fall asleep at a park. 

"Have you been smoking?"

"No." Sasuke denied, habitually. It was clear that Kakashi didn't believe him as he outstretched a hand. With a huff, Sasuke shoved his pack of cigs into his guardian's palm. When Kakashi still gave him an expectant look, he cursed under his breath and added the small lighter in the other palm.

"Language Sasuke," Kakashi warned, though his voice was no longer cheery. Just tired. "Go wash off that awful smoke smell."

Moodily, the teen stormed off to his room. His room was devoid of any decorations. Across from his bed adorned with navy covers was a mahogany desk with his laptop next to a bookshelf that had various novels and one photo of him and Kakashi from when he was 12 years old. 

After plugging in his phone, the room filled with the ding of his notifications, the missed calls and texts he had missed were just now coming through. Laying on his stomach, Sasuke scrolled through the messages. Most were from Sakura.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Where are you?"

"Answer my calls."

Sasuke groaned into his pillow. He was hoping she'd just break up with him already. Why couldn't he bring himself to do it?

"Yo Sasuke! Me and Juugo r going 2 Zaku's. U coming???"

The thought of partying almost made Sasuke gag. Finally, he checked his voicemail. He had 12 missed calls from Kakashi. 

"Christ," Sasuke groaned and quickly shut off his phone again. 

Just as he felt he was about to fall asleep, Kakashi's voice sounded from the foot of the stairs.

"Sasuke, dinner's ready." 

Quickly spraying himself with the cologne Kakashi bought him for Christmas the last year, Sasuke trudged downstairs. He found himself hungrier than usual. The small kitchen table displayed the results of Kakashi's toils in cooking. Pork chops, a sweet potato, and broccoli waited for him at his spot. 

"I tried a new recipe," Kakashi cheered. It was obvious the guardian was rather pleased with himself. The two sat in their respective seats at their cozy table and quietly set to work eating their meals. 

"So, Sasuke, I got an interesting phone call today…" There was a pause as if Kakashi was bracing himself for something unpleasant, "A date has been set."

At first, Sasuke had no clue what Kakashi was talking about. The way Kakashi was staring, as if Sasuke'd flip a table at any moment, clued Sasuke in. "Whatever," he shrugged, though inside he felt his stomach flutter.

"Sasuke," Kakashi chided, irritated by how indifferent Sasuke. "The lawyers want to schedule a time to discuss your options."

"I'm not talking about this," Sasuke sneered, stabbing a piece of pork a bit more aggressively than needed. 

"You're going to have to, Sasuke. Itachi wouldn't want-" 

Just the mention of his name made bile threaten to rise up his throat. "Don't even say his name," Sasuke spat, almost choking on his words in his haste to get the words out. He stomped off to his bedroom, slamming and locking the door behind him.


	2. First Day of School

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naruto starts his first day of public school

The banging of pots and pans paired with the smell of bacon wafted through the room as Jiraiya opened the door to wake up his grandson. "Naruto, you're going to be late for your first day." The long, white-haired hermit yelled, jarring the scrawny 16-year-old blonde awake. "Get your ass out of bed, kid."

"Shit, I'm awake already you old pervert!" Naruto returned the shout, jumping up in bed with his black sleeping cap askew. There was a shriek from the downstairs and the blond immediately knew it was Tsunade telling him to respect his grandfather even though her words were indecipherable. As soon as Naruto's feet touched the floorboards, Jiraiya was gone from the room. 

Mumbling curses the whole way to the bathroom, he neatly hung his uniform on the back of his door to de-wrinkle as he showered. For the past four years, Naruto was homeschooled by Iruka Umino, an acquaintance of Jiraiya's. Today, though, he went to 11th grade at the local public high school. Bored by the daily routine, Naruto had begged Jiraiya to let him spend his last two years before college in public school.

"Did I hear you call Jiraiya an old pervert, you brat?" Naruto didn't even leave the bottom step before his grandmother's sharp voice scolded him. "Didn't we teach you any respect?"

"He was the one in my room yelling, granny," The blond groaned, rubbing his eyes tiredly as he took his place at the kitchen island. A bowl of fruit was placed at his spot. "No bacon?" Naruto groaned.

Tsunade smacked him on the back of his head, "Here, you ungrateful child," and she unceremoniously dropped a plate of bacon with two waffles in front of her grandson. The grandmother was wearing her light blonde hair in two long pig tails, her usual pair of scrubs and a pair of black heels. She worked as the lead trauma surgeon at the Konoha local hospital.

"Now, I'm sure Naruto is just nervous for his first day," Jiraiya placated as he entered the kitchen. "This will be his first time around ladies in a long time," His words were emphasized with his deep chuckles. Tsunade pursed her lips at her husband. She looked like she was about to smack him on the back of the head too. 

"See? He is an old pervert," Naruto grumbled, his cheeks dusted pink.

"Well, you're not wrong," Tsunade sighed and stole two pieces of bacon from her grandson's plate. "I'm headed to the hospital. Naruto, don't do anything stupid at school, please." Tsunade flicked his forehead before hurrying out the door.

The blond watched after her with a pout, "She has no faith in me." 

Jiraiya hummed, "Well, you do get in trouble quite often."

Naruto grinned mischievously, "Me? Never."

"You're right, you were expelled from your previous schools for no reason," Jiraiya sipped his coffee.

Naruto's only comeback was to stick his tongue out.

"Put that tongue back in your mouth and finish your food. You'll miss the bus." 

"Yes, sir." Naruto saluted sarcastically.

Admittedly, the blond's relationship with his grandparents was a little strange. There was a lot of arguments and a lot of drinking in the house but Naruto never knew anything different. His real parents died right after he was born. How, he wasn't sure. Jiraiya nor Tsunade would talk about his parents. Life was too hectic for Naruto to explore the topic as Jiraiya was always traveling for book signings. It wasn't until he turned 11 that Jiraiya and Tsunade got married and they moved to this town. They had a courthouse marriage as neither had much family to invite. 

Apparently, Naruto had been daydreaming for longer than he thought. "Naruto, get your ass moving to the bus stop!" 

"Alright, alright!" Naruto quickly shoved the rest of his bacon in his mouth and fumbled for his backpack. 

The groaning of the bus could be heard from the doorway as Naruto waved goodbye to his grandfather without looking back. "Bye Gramps."

There was someone else at the bus stop as Naruto approached. He recognized the tall teen as that jerk Sakura was dating. "What are you doing here, bastard?" Naruto pointed accusingly.

By the look on the Uchiha's pale face, he was just as surprised. "Idiot, I'm waiting for the bus."

Naruto eyed the broody teen suspiciously, "Yeah, okay."

"What else would I be doing, you dimwit?"

"Stop calling me names, asshole!"

"You are the one who addressed me as ‘bastard'." 

"Because you are!" Naruto barked.

"And you are a moron," Sasuke countered.

"I am not! I get good grades."

Sasuke scoffed, clearly not believing the blond. "In what? P.E.?"

The two continued to bicker back and forth like this. They were so wrapped up in their argument that they failed to realize the bus arrived. "You two getting on or not?" 

"Shit, you almost made me miss the bus!" Naruto pointed at Sasuke accusingly and rushed on the bus.

In the movies, all the cool kids sat in the back. So, Naruto skipped the empty seats he encountered at the front and took the last available seat. Sasuke did the opposite sitting up at the front of the bus with his earphones in. "Miserable ass," Naruto sighed under his breath.

Much to the blond's dismay, nobody sat next to him on the way to school. Part of his first day of school plan was to make a friend on the bus. Instead, he watched a large portion of students ogling Sasuke and whispering. His phone buzzed in his pocket.

"See you at lunch today?" – Sakura

Smiling, he texted back, "Yup! 4th period."

"Cool, I'll meet you at the entrance to the cafeteria."

The message from Sakura boosted his plummeting mood and, since they were on opposite ends of the bus, he didn't even run into Sasuke again. The hallways were a maze of bodies. Naruto could hardly see where he was going but luckily he didn't have to go far to make it to the front office.

"Naruto?" A woman who appeared to be in her 30s called from where she was leaning on the office desk. She had a bob cut and was wearing an all-black dress. There wasn't anything unusual about her. 

"I'm Dr. Shizune Kato," She introduced herself and extended her hand. "I'm the 11th-grade counselor and social worker. I used to work alongside your grandmother."

"Oh, granny told me about you!" Naruto blurted without thinking. Immediately, his face flushed with embarrassment. Luckily Shizune ignored the outburst.

"Well, anyways, I've asked another student to show you around this week. Your mother told me you're interested in playing soccer so I think this arrangement will be good. However, he is running a little late…" Her voice trailed off at the end.

Suddenly, the door to the office burst open and an eccentric boy dramatically fell to the floor yelling. At least, Naruto thought he fell until the strange boy started doing pushups. "I'm sorry I'm late, Dr. Shizune!". 

"Lee, that's really not necessary." Dr. Shizune tried to pry Lee out of his pushups, flustered. 

Naruto had to hide his laughter behind his hand. The secretaries peered over their desks staring at the spectacle. 

"Oh, you must be Naruto!" Lee was finally pulled away from his pushups. "Woah, you look so youthful! We're going to be great friends," Lee nodded enthusiastically.

"Er…Yeah," Naruto said and sent Dr. Shizune a pleading look. The boy before him was dressed in their all white and black school uniforms except he was also sporting a green ascot. His hair was cut in a strange bowl cut and his eyebrows were…ungroomed, to say the least. 

"Well, let's head to homeroom!" Lee grabbed Naruto and pulled him in tow. Dr. Shizune sent Naruto an apologetic look and waved.

Naruto was highly aware of the weird looks they were receiving. A bright blond-haired kid being pulled by some strange ascot-wearing, bushy-browed stranger. They stopped in front of a set of lockers. "Do you need help getting your locker open?"

"Uh, yes please."

Without hesitation, Lee grabbed Naruto's schedule that he had jotted down the combination on. Bushy brows explained as he went but Naruto was sure he'd forget the moment he closed the locker again. "So, Lee was it?" Naruto asked hesitantly.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself!" Lee cried and for a second Naruto was worried he'd go back to his pushups. "My name is Rock Lee. I go by Lee. It's nice to meet you Naruto Uzumaki."

"You too," Naruto said, a little more reserved than usual. This wasn't who he pictured his first friend to be. "So, you're on the soccer team?"

"Yes! I already let Coach Gai know the new kid will be trying out."

"Oh...Wow," Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Lee obviously didn't find anything wrong about his assertiveness and continued. "Yeah, some guys and I are practicing for tryouts after school all this week. Would you like to join?"

Grateful for the invitation, Naruto grinned. "That would be great! I don't have my gear today but I'll bring it tomorrow." 

Lee wrapped an arm around his shoulder and pumped his fist, "Alright!" 

"What's up, Lee?" A feminine voice called from down the hall. It was a girl with dark brown hair pulled up in two identical buns. She was with another boy with long brown hair and his eyes were hauntingly violet. He had an expression that was void of pretty much all emotion. It sort of reminded him of Uchiha.

"Oh, Tenten and Neji! This is Naruto Uzumaki, a new student." He gestured to the blond enthusiastically. "He's also a possible new recruit for the team!"

Tenten smiled and waved politely but her counterpart, Neji, only nodded then proceeded to look Naruto up and down. "Er, nice to meet you guys." Naruto offered.

"He looks a little scrawny," was all Neji offered. Tenten smirked a little as if she was about to laugh and the two walked away.

"Well, it's about time to go to class," Lee pointed to the class next to his locker. "I'll see you right before lunch to show you to the cafeteria. I'll drop by at the end of your 3rd-period class." Lee hurried after his two friends. 

"Naruto, if you'd be so kind to join us I can introduce you to the class." A middle-aged man with bright silver hair with half his face covered by a surgical mask peeked from the doorway. 

"Oh, right," Naruto quickly shut his locker and walked into the classroom. His hands suddenly felt clammy and he found himself wiping the sweat off on his pants. The words Kakashi Hatake were written on the chalkboard, presumably the teacher's name.

"Class, it is my pleasure to introduce Naruto Uzumaki. He's new to the school so please take good care of him." Kakashi introduced, his eyes smiling warmly. "You'll take a seat behind Sasuke Uchiha over there." 

Naruto followed Kakashi's gesture to the back right-hand corner of the room where the bastard was with a scowl. The Uchiha did not even acknowledge his existence. Without looking at any of the other students, Naruto hurried to his new desk in the back. 

The class was rather large so the desks seemed pretty cramped. It's been so long since Naruto was in public school that he wasn't sure if this was abnormal though. The smell of clean linen and fresh rain wafted into his nostrils.

"Idiot, are you sniffing me?" Sasuke growled, his voice laced with danger.

Not even noticing how obvious it was that he was smelling the Uchiha, Naruto panicked. "N-no, why the fuck would I?" He screeched, surprising even himself.

"Naruto," Kakashi's warm voice now had an edge to it, "No cursing in my class."

"O-oh, sorry!" Naruto apologized, face resembling a tomato.

"Dumbass," Sasuke whispered under his breath which earned him a well-placed jab in the shoulder.

"Now, I'm going to pass out the syllabus for English this fall. Please wait and we'll read it together."

The class itself was uneventful. Naruto diligently took notes, his tongue between his teeth. Kakashi was a laidback teacher, so relaxed it was like he was barely paying attention at all. However, he was surprisingly observant. Especially considering the amount of time he spent with his back to the class.

"Alright, tomorrow we'll begin discussing the summer reading. Make sure you bring your essays!" Kakashi called just as the bell rang. He had to practically yell over the sound of notebooks closing and chairs scraping the floor. 

"Essay?!" Naruto's stomach dropped. He had no idea there was an essay. The yell must have been louder than he thought as several people in his vicinity stared.

A dark chuckle abruptly interrupted Naruto's tantrum. "Moron, you just realized there's an essay?" Naruto wanted to punch that condescending smirk off that bastard's face.

"Shut up! I-I lost my assignment," Naruto pouted. It was true, at the beginning of the summer he was mailed his book assignment but he had lost it almost immediately. Too ashamed to tell his grandparents, who no doubt would have murdered him and immediately taken him out of public school, he merely forgot about its existence.

Sasuke was stuffing his notebook in his bag and Naruto's hopes soared as he saw the assignment sticking out of the folder. "Say," Naruto began in as amicable voice as he could gather, "Can I borrow your assignment sheet? I just need to see the question."

The look he received was surprisingly scathing. "What do I get in return?"

Naruto gawked, "What do you mean?! It's literally just a sheet of paper."

"Then why don't you ask Kakashi for a new one?" 

"B-because I don't want him to know I didn't read the book…" Naruto admitted, looking away anxiously.

"Well, good luck with that," Sasuke grumbled, threw his backpack over his shoulder and walked away.

"What a jerk," Naruto groaned and kicked the leg of the table.

"Uhm," A small, hesitant voice whispered from a few feet away. It was a girl with a short, bobbed haircut that was a unique shade of purple. Her eyes were the same haunting violet as that Neji guy. "N-naruto?"

"Uh, hey," Naruto grinned sheepishly. This was the first person to willingly talk to him.

Without a word, the girl held out a piece of paper. The blond immediately recognized it as the assignment. "Damn, you're a lifesaver!" Naruto exclaimed and hugged the girl without thinking twice. 

The girl's face turned a bright red color. The next thing Naruto knew, she was gone and the only thing she left behind was the assignment.

Feeling a little redeemed, Naruto continued his day. The next two classes were just as uneventful, if not more so. History and Statistics…Not his strong suits. By the time 4th period rolled around, he was dying to escape the classroom.

Lee was waiting for him outside his class as the bell rang. "Naruto!" Still just as happy to see him as the first time they met this morning. "How were your classes?"

"Fine," Naruto shrugged. Lee grabbed him by the shoulder and led the way to the cafeteria.

"You're going to love the cafeteria food, Naruto! The food is the meal of champions," the overly enthusiastic teen pumped his fist in the air again.

"Oh, I thought that was breakfast," Naruto joked lamely, overtaken by the amount of energy pouring out of Lee.

If Lee got the joke, he didn't let it show as he continued to rant about the food. 

"Lee, are you getting Naruto's hopes up?" A familiar voice called from down the hall. To Naruto's relief, it was Sakura. 

"Oh, Ms. Haruno!" Lee's face turned a faint pink. "I was just explaining the wonders of our cafeteria."

Sakura's forehead creased and for a moment Naruto was afraid she'd punch Lee. "What did I say about calling me Ms. Haruno? I'm younger than you. It's weird."

"My apologies, Ms- I mean Sakura!" Lee bowed, begging for forgiveness. "I will leave Naruto in your capable hands!" There was a soft pat on Naruto's back and Bushy Brows was gone.

"He is…interesting," Naruto noted. 

Sakura nodded in agreement, "He's certainly something else." They stared in the direction he had gone but there was no trace of him. "Anyways, let's go! The gang is reserving a seat for us."

The cafeteria was packed and consisted of 10 rows of long rectangular tables. Sun glared through the tall windows surrounding the room. The way the café overlooked a large lake was very picturesque. Sakura and Naruto passed all the tables to enter an area where there was a buffet-style set up of food. 

Even at first glance, Naruto could tell that the food was not "the meal of champions" as Lee had said. "Disappointed?" Sakura teased. 

"A little, yeah," Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"I usually get the chicken salad or a burger," Sakura suggested and pointed out the selections. Naruto went with a burger and followed Sakura to the cash register to pay. 

After buying his burger, fries, and soda, Sakura led Naruto to a table in the middle. Gathered there was an interesting group of teens. Sakura introduced the group: Karin, a strange bright red-head girl, Suigetsu, a boy who looked like a shark, and Juugo, an extremely large orange-haired boy who looked like he could snap Naruto in half. 

Naruto took a seat on the end next to Sakura. For some reason, these weren't the kind of people he had envisioned his long-time crush to hang out with. 

"So, new kid, where you from?" It was the shark-faced boy who addressed him first. There was something unsettling about the way Suigetsu was looking at him.

"Uh, well I grew up here actually but my grandpa was always traveling so I was homeschooled," Naruto explained, picking at his food anxiously.

"Why are you so nervous?" Karin leaned across the table inquisitively, adjusting her red glasses. Naruto's face flushed at the bluntness of the question. 

Sakura turned to the redhead, "He's just shy," her words had a certain bite to them. 

Suigetsu cackled. "Sakura and Karin have a kind of…rivalry," he explained. "Karin here has an obsession with Sasuke." He cocked his head to the right toward Karin.

"I do not," Karin growled and punched Suigetsu in the shoulder.

Suigetsu smirked and shrugged, "She'll deny it to her dying breath but it's true." The expression on Karin's face was pure murder. "Speak of the devil," Suigetsu cackled again.

Out of nowhere, Sasuke appeared with a paper bag in hand and sat down across from Sakura and next to Suigetsu. He completely ignored Suigetsu's comment, not caring what they were talking about. 

"What's moron doing here?" Sasuke questioned a smirk dancing on his lips.

"Asshole!" Naruto glared at the bastard.

Sakura's eye twitched visibly, "Can we please have a lunch where nobody fights this year?" 

"He started it!" Naruto whined.

Sakura swatted the blond on the back of the head, "I don't care."

"So, why were you late, Sasuke?" The giant kid finally spoke, his voice placating in an obvious attempt at changing the subject.

Sasuke opened his bag and pulled out a sandwich that seemed to consist mostly of tomato. "None of your business," he grunted and picked at his food.

"Everything has to be a mystery with Sasuke," Suigetsu explained to Naruto. Karin gave Suigetsu a warning glare and Sakura cleared her throat threateningly. Sasuke was unfazed. Naruto snickered, enjoying the jokes at Sasuke's expense.

"Are you going to soccer practice after school today, Naruto?" Sakura asked pleasantly to her best friend. Sasuke looked up, the question seemed to get his attention.

"Lee invited me but I don't have any of my stuff so maybe tomorrow."

Suigetsu turned to the new kid, "You're gonna try out for soccer?" The shark-faced boy looked pleased with the thought.

"I think so, yeah."

"Maybe you'll replace Sasuke here as captain next year," Suigetsu grinned maliciously at the Uchiha who only rolled his eyes.

"Probably," Naruto returned the grin cockily.

"You can come watch the practice with me, Naruto," Sakura suggested.

"Oh, sure." Naruto accepted the invitation, glad for the excuse to procrastinate from writing his essay.

Lunch was over before he knew it. While still taken aback by Sakura's friend group, it wasn't as tense or bad as he thought. Their friends were a little strange and he expected that Sakura would have sat with Ino but figured it was because of Sasuke that she did not.

Fortunately, the rest of the day passed just as fast as lunch had. Lee met him outside his last period class with his usual enthusiasm. "I heard you're watching us practice today!"

"Wow, news moves pretty fast around here, huh?" Naruto grinned. 

The bushy-browed teen led Naruto to the locker room first. "This is where we'll meet tomorrow for practice."

"Naruto!" Sakura called and Naruto felt déjà vu. Lagging behind Sakura was Sasuke, both hands in his pockets looking broody. Suigetsu had his arm around the Uchiha's shoulder, whispering something in his ear. Once they were all outside the locker room, Sakura turned to her boyfriend and planted a kiss on his cheek. Naruto saw Suigetsu grin mischievously and cackle, his shark tooth poking out over his bottom lip.

"Let's head to the bleachers, okay?" Sakura pulled on Naruto's hand, ignoring Suigetsu. Without complaint, Naruto followed his best friend.

"What's up with that guy?"

"Who? Suigetsu?" Sakura paused as they exited the school. "What do you mean?"

"He's…creepy, don't you think?" Naruto's lips pursed as he pondered over the shark-faced boy.

Sakura shrugged, "I guess I'm just used to him by now."

"I don't trust him," Naruto said childishly, arms crossed against his chest. The pink haired girl only laughed. "He's always smirking and looking at me." 

"Maybe he likes you," Sakura sang. Naruto gawked at his friend who only laughed in response. 

The soccer field wasn't far as they only had to cross the parking lot to arrive at the bleachers overlooking the lot. Soccer was definitely the biggest sport in the school. Many other students sat on the bleachers waiting to watch the practice. Naruto couldn't help envisioning himself on that field, hundreds of students watching him as he scored a winning goal.

A few minutes after they sat down, a group of boys entered the field. Sakura shouted Sasuke's name and waved eagerly but the Uchiha only stoically nodded, of course. Naruto glared menacingly at him but immediately looked away as Suigetsu caught sight of him and waved.

As the group of boys started to stretch, Sakura turned to Naruto. "So, I've been wondering...We didn't get to talk that much the other day because you left so quickly. What do you think of Sasuke?" The way she was looking at him, she was obviously searching for approval of some sort.

Naruto was torn by this question. On one hand, this would be a good time to tell her what he honestly thought of her boyfriend: that he was an asshole, he didn't really care about her, he treated people like garbage. However, on the other hand, Naruto could tell that Sakura really liked him. He couldn't tell what she saw in him but it was clear that his opinion probably wouldn't mean much. 

Trying to be supportive, he faked a smile as best as he could, "Well, he seems nice."

"That's it?" Sakura sighed, an eyebrow raised.

"What do you want me to say?" Naruto whined pathetically.

Sakura glared at her friend, "I don't know. Just something better than ‘he seems nice.' You're a guy."

Naruto snorted, "I'm glad you noticed." 

Sakura's glare just grew stronger, "You know what I mean."

"You think that just because we're both dudes I can psychoanalyze your boyfriend or something?"

Sakura ran a hand through her hair in frustration. "Why are you so pissed?" She asked, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Just...it was a strange day," Naruto sighed and resigned. "I don't know Sasuke but you seem happy. That's all I care about."

This seemed to appease Sakura for now. "That's so sweet!" She grinned. "I am happy. I've never had a boyfriend before. I'm still surprised he asked me out." 

This surprised Naruto. Sasuke did not seem to be as interested in Sakura which led him to believe that Sakura was the one who initiated the relationship.

"My parents are going out of town for a weekend next month. I think we're going to do ‘it'." Sakura's cheeks were slightly flushed and her last words were shy and flustered.

Way too much information. The last thing he wanted to know was that the girl he had a crush on for 10 years was planning to lose her virginity to some asshole who didn't give a shit about her.

"Are you sure?" 

For a moment Sakura seemed surprised at the question. Naruto could understand why he was usually supportive of everything Sakura did. "Why are you suddenly so prude? Of course, I'm sure," she said defensively.

"I'm not being a prude, I just...don't want you to regret anything."

"And what do you know about sex? Have you even done it with anyone?" Sakura asked sassily.

This made Naruto close his mouth tightly. He suddenly felt like all the air left his body. His throat burnt and there was a threatening ache in his stomach like he was going to vomit. He wanted to say something funny or cheeky in return but what came out was a normal big smile and a shake of his head. "I'm just a natural."

"Yeah, right." Sakura snorted derisively. "I haven't even decided yet. I mean, it's like a month away. We'll see," she shrugged and nudged him with her elbow playfully. "So, are you gonna try out for the soccer team?"

The sudden switch in topics dissipated the choking feeling and he silently exhaled in relief. "I'm thinking about it." 

The two turned back to the practice. The group of teens finally got to playing a game. Sasuke looked graceful on the team, Naruto couldn't help but notice. It was obvious the way his team looked and interacted with him on the sidelines that the Uchiha was the team captain. The bastard didn't look so evil during the game.


	3. Tryouts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First day of tryouts and Kakashi has guests over for dinner

_A seven-year-old Sasuke was sniffling in the corner of his bedroom when Itachi found him. “Sasuke? I heard your fight with father.”_

_The crying only worsened at the mention of ‘father’. “I failed my test,” Sasuke croaked weakly. Itachi knew from experience that anything less than perfect was unacceptable with their parents._  
`  
“There will be plenty of other ways for you to make up that grade,” Itachi reassured. He sat on the floor next to his little brother who immediately scooted closer. 

_“It doesn’t matter.” More tears escaped the littlest Uchiha’s eyes._

_“Dad thinks I’m stupid.”_

_Their father could be explosive at times with very little control of his anger. This meant that often his words were unfiltered and hurtful. While Itachi would get angry and frustrated, Sasuke would take the words more to heart. He was always the more sensitive child._

_“He said that?” Itachi asked, a bit defensively._

_Sasuke shook his head, “He might as well have.” This brought on a new onslaught of tears. “He told you me you never got a bad grade like this.”_

_The older Uchiha couldn’t help himself, a chuckle escaped his lips. “I’ll help you study for the next one,” Itachi reassured the boy, ruffling his hair playfully. This seemed to cheer Sasuke up considerably._

_“Really, ‘tachi?” Sasuke’s eyes were wide and bloodshot from the crying._

_Itachi smiled at his younger brother, amused by the sudden change in emotion. “Sure. I have a feeling you’ll end up surpassing me someday.”_

“Sasuke, breakfast is ready!” Kakashi called from the bottom of the steps. The words brought him back into his body slowly as he realized he’d been staring at the ceiling for almost 2 hours. Not bothering to change or shower, Sasuke slowly trudged his way to the kitchen in his flannel pants and an oversized t-shirt.

“My, you look like you had a rough night,” Kakashi teased his ward. “I set some eggs and bacon at your spot. Want some coffee?”

“Sure,” Sasuke grunted and pulled out his seat grudgingly. He stared at the eggs and bacon displayed before him, uninterested. 

The father figure peered over the kitchen counter, disapproval written all over the uncovered portion of his face. “Sasuke, you’re getting too skinny. Eat your food.”

“I’m not skinny,” Sasuke growled and bit into a piece of bacon, though it was an extremely small piece.

Kakashi placed a cup of black coffee in front of Sasuke. “You’ll need your energy for tryouts today. Don’t want to lose that captain position do you?”

Sasuke merely shrugged uncaringly with a sip of his coffee. When Sasuke was younger he loved playing soccer. His older brother had been an amazing player and so by default, Sasuke wanted to be better. Now, he only played it because he was good at it. It was just something to waste time. There was no real stake in the game. 

Kakashi didn’t acknowledge this indifference. Though the way he slumped over the kitchen counter to wash the dishes told a different story. It was clear the guardian sometimes got disheartened by the uncaring attitude of his ward.

As Sasuke went to take a sip of coffee, his phone buzzed. “Yo, don’t forget your gear for tryouts.” It was Kiba texting the team’s group chat. 

For some reason, Kiba equated frequently texting in the group chat to be the making of a good captain. This was one of dog boy’s many complaints about Sasuke becoming team captain.

“Cool your shit, dog breath. You’ve only been reminding us every day since last season.” Suigetsu was the first to reply.

“Only because you forgot yours last year, shark face.” Kiba returned.

“Guys, let’s not start this season fighting each other.” Juugo texted, placatingly as always.

“Sasuke, stop texting and go change into your uniform,” Kakashi took his plate of leftover bacon, a disapproving look plastered on his face. 

Sasuke didn’t know how long he had been staring at his phone but the bus would be at the stop soon. “I’ll see you in homeroom. Make sure you come home right after tryouts today, we're expecting company.” 

The guardian ruffled his ward’s hair playfully and left the house promptly. Rarely did Sasuke agree to a lift to school. Usually, his guardian had to go to school early for meetings and whatnot which left him idly waiting in the classroom for at least an hour.

It didn’t take long to slip into his uniform. Fortunately, his duffel bag was already packed and ready at the door. Naruto was already at the bus stop when he approached. The sky was overcast and gave the town a dreary look, almost apocalyptic. A bright orange duffel bag was propped against the stop sign. 

“Yo, loser,” Sasuke scoffed. To Sasuke’s satisfaction, Naruto’s striking blue eyes widened. He couldn’t help but notice those eyes were now a darker shade against the gray sky. “Are you trying out for the soccer team today?”

Finally, Naruto narrowed his eyes, his brows furrowed. “None of your business, asshole.”

“Of course it is, idiot.” Sasuke laughed, “I’m the team captain.”

“Well, we’ll see how long that lasts,” Naruto sneered.

Cocking his head to the side, “Oh? You’re going to replace me?”

A cocky grin overtook the angry expression. “Yeah, I’m going to kick your scrawny ass so bad the coach will beg me to be captain.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Sasuke smirked cockily.

Before Naruto could respond, the bus stopped in front of the two. “Will you two fight like this every day?” The bus driver asked warily.

“Probably,” Naruto shrugged and glared at the Uchiha.

Sasuke only rolled his eyes and took his usual seat up front. He could immediately feel the eyes on the back of his head. Why were girls always staring at him? It annoyed Sasuke to no end. Thanks to his headphones and lack of eye contact, nobody tried to talk to him through the whole ride. 

Sakura found Sasuke at his locker. “I heard you ride the same bus as Naruto,” Sakura pried, her smile wide and hopeful.

“Unfortunately,” Sasuke grunted. 

The obvious dislike that Sasuke had for the blond did not bode well with Sakura. “I wish you two could get along,” She sighed.

“Why is it so important to you that I get along with that idiot?” Sasuke was getting annoyed at how persistent his girlfriend was at getting the two to be nice to each other.

Sakura’s lips pursed, the way her eyebrows furrowed and her arms crossed told him that the reasoning was something she thought he should already know. “He’s my best friend.” 

Sasuke shrugged, “And?”

“And I want my best friend to be able to hang out with me without worrying my boyfriend will murder him!” Sakura huffed impatiently. 

“Not going to happen.”

Sakura threw her hands up in defeat dramatically. “Fine. The bell is about to ring, I’ll see you at lunch?”

Sasuke simply nodded and turned to walk away. A hand caught his wrist to stop him and Sakura surprised him by pressing a kiss to his cheek.

After his third period class, Suigetsu, Karin and Juugo caught up to him in the hallway. Karin was holding a large grocery bag. “I brought lunch! Let’s go to our secret spot,” the red-headed girl sang.

Their secret spot was behind the bleachers of the soccer field. It was always empty during the day and so far they had never been caught. 

Suigetsu pulled a joint out of his pocket and Juugo offered a light. 

“Ahh, it’s so nice to escape once in a while,” Karin sighed after taking a puff.

“What’s got you stressed?” Juugo asked curiously.

The redhead shrugged, “I hate all my classes.” 

“Me too,” Suigetsu sighed and took a bite of his sandwich. “Cucumbers in my sandwich?” The pale boy gasped, “You know me so well, Karin.” He feigned astonishment with a toothy grin.

“You’re welcome,” Karin offered suspiciously, not used to Suigetsu being even somewhat pleasant to her. Must be the drugs.

“Where’s your new friend, Sasuke?” Suigetsu’s toothy grin didn’t fade at all.

“What friend?”

“That hot blond guy with the eyes!”

Sasuke snorted derisively, “We’re not friends.”

“I hear he’s going to try out for the team today,” Juugo offered.

Karin narrowed her eyes and adjusted her glasses, “Who are you talking about?”

“Naruto Uzumaki,” Juugo supplied.

“Suigetsu, he sits with us at lunch you fucking idiot. Wait, Uzumaki?!” Karin shrieked. A look of recognition lit the other’s faces as she emphasized the last name.

“No way!” Suigetsu snickered, “You two are related? I guess the looks run in his side of the family.” This earned him a punch to the stomach.

Juugo tossed a new joint to Karin who was biting her nails, deep in thought. 

“I guess we could be,” Karin contemplated, expertly blowing out the smoke in delicate rings.

“Who are your parents?” Juugo asked.

Karin shook her head and passed the joint to Sasuke. “I never met them,” she shrugged casually. “Uzumaki is the name on my birth certificate.”

The group of friends spent the rest of the lunch period contemplating their possible relationship. At the end of the period, Karin had the boys line up to be sprayed by air freshener as their usual ritual.

Sakura didn’t catch up to Sasuke again until he was on his way to tryouts. “Where were you at lunch?” His girlfriend asked as she latched onto his arm.

“Soccer stuff,” Sasuke lied with a shrug. Sakura looked as if she didn't really believe him but she didn’t push the subject.

It was hot outside when all the boys got onto the field. Kiba was already complaining about the heat and Suigetsu was chugging water as if he was in the middle of a desert. 

“Welcome back, boys!” The energetic voice of Coach Gai rang out across the field. He wore his usual, vomit-inducing green jumpsuit. The only person who responded with the same energy was Lee. 

“Let’s start with some stretches and drills!”

Sasuke noticed with great satisfaction that while Naruto wasn’t necessarily terrible, he wasn’t exactly a threat to his captain position. The idiot was clumsy and tripped several times in tryouts. He’d be lucky to even make the team. 

By the end of the drills, everyone looked exhausted. “Good work, everyone!” Gai clapped and jogged back over to the group of teens. “Tomorrow, we’re going to have a scrimmage.” Naruto and Lee were the only ones with enough energy to cheer excitedly. “That’s the spirit!” The coach yelled back.

Sakura ran down from the bleachers, a huge smile on her face. 

“Sasuke, Naruto you did so well!” 

Naruto had a grin plastered all over his face, obviously pleased with himself. He went in for a hug but Sakura squealed and roughly pushed him away. “You stink!” Her nose scrunched up in disgust. A few surrounding teens laughed at the display.

“Do you guys need a ride home?” Sakura offered eagerly, her gaze shifted to Sasuke.

“Kakashi is driving me home,” Sasuke rejected.

Seeing his chance, Naruto’s blue eyes widened at the invitation. “That would be great!”

Sasuke didn’t miss the look of disappointment in his girlfriend’s jade eyes. At some point in the relationship, Sasuke probably would have felt guilty when faced with that look. However, now he didn’t feel anything. 

“Text me later?” Sakura asked, playing with the lower hem of his t-shirt. The boyfriend only nodded in response. This seemed to be good enough for her as she leaned up to kiss his cheek. 

As Sakura and Naruto walked away, Suigetsu popped out of nowhere. “Wanna hang out?” The question was followed by a long swig of water. 

“Kakashi is waiting for me. Go fuck someone else,” Sasuke walked off without looking at his fling.

“Wow, someone’s panties are in a knot. Is it because that hottie left with your girlfriend?” Sasuke shot Suigetsu a withering glance, a promise of death. 

Kakashi was already in the car when Sasuke approached. When they made eye contact, Sasuke noticed there was a strange look cast across the visible portion of the guardian’s face. This would be an interesting conversation. 

“How were tryouts?” Kakashi asked, his eyes creased in his fake fatherly smile. Sasuke shrugged with his usual air of indifference. 

“That good, huh?” The guardian joked. "When we get home, you'll probably want to take a shower. Our guests will be arriving in about 2 hours or so."

Sasuke eyed his guardian suspiciously. "What guests?"

"Oh, just a friend," Kakashi evaded the question.

"A friend you fuck?" Sasuke asked bluntly.

The father was way past the point of being surprised by Sasuke's crass language. "Not yet," Kakashi sang.

"Great, so it's a setup."

"Don't worry, Sasuke. He's bringing a friend for you," Kakashi assured the teen as if that would make him look forward to dinner.

"So, I'm the distraction?" 

"If that's what you'd like to call it, then yes," Kakashi chuckled.

Sasuke moodily stomped right up to his room as soon as they returned home. Rolling a blunt, he sat on the window sill, his feet swinging outside. After a few hits, his body finally relaxed. Once he snuffed out the joint on the edge of the building, he crawled back into his room to force himself to shower. Kakashi would kill him if he smelled like weed at dinner. 

The guests arrived as Sasuke toweled himself dry and he could hear Kakashi’s voice calling for him from the bottom of the stairs. “I’m coming!” The teen groaned and shrugged on a pair of sweatpants and a fitted v-neck navy blue t-shirt. Not bothering to do much with his hair, Sasuke stomped down the stairs.

“Ah, Iruka~ This bundle of joy is my son, Sasuke.” Kakashi introduced as he energetically waved his ward into the room. 

Iruka was a few inches shorter than Kakashi who stood at 6 feet tall. His skin was a light brown and there was a scar that ran over his nose. As soon as their eyes met, Iruka’s face split into a warm smile and his hand reached out to Sasuke’s. “Nice to meet you, Sasuke.”

Goaded by a discrete nudge on Kakashi’s part, Sasuke accepted the outreached hand and grunted, “You too.” 

“And this is Naruto,” Iruka started, “he used to be one of my students. I believe you are the same age.” The middle-aged man stepped out of the way and gestured to none other than Naruto Uzumaki. Immediately, Naruto’s face turned into a shade of bright pink. Sasuke smirked nonchalantly at the blond. 

“'Ruka, we know each other already,” Naruto grumbled and started to fidget with his cell phone anxiously. Iruka seemed surprised yet pleased, obviously hopeful that they would become friends. 

The dinner started off with boring adult small talk. Sasuke and Naruto stayed quiet throughout this conversation and only focused on their food. Suddenly, Kakashi turned to Naruto. “So, Naruto do you play any sports?”

Right on cue, Naruto’s face flushed slightly again. “Uh, well,” he hesitated and shot Sasuke a glance, “I used to play soccer.”

“Oh, Sasuke’s on the team. Maybe he can help you join,” Kakashi suggested with a meaningful look at his ward.

“Doubt it,” Sasuke grumbled under his breath but shot Iruka - who was looking at him with hopeful eyes - an extremely exaggerated and fake smile.

Iruka was visibly happy - feeling that his mentee would finally make friends with a “non-troublemaker.” Little did he know. Sasuke continued to eat in silence and let the four grown-ups fawn over Naruto’s love of soccer. The blond boy looked uneasy and uncomfortable, to say the least.

“Stop,” Naruto whined, “I’m not even that good. I probably won’t even make the team.” He huffed.

Iruka pursed his lips disapprovingly, “Well, if you have that attitude you won’t.”

“Iruka’s right. I’m sure you’re doing great at tryouts so far and Sasuke will put in a good word for you.” Kakashi’s annoyingly kind voice tried to cheer up the blond. 

Naruto seemed to grumble something under his breath and paid extra attention to the food on his plate. The other teen did not miss the stern glance Iruka gave his student. 

Catching the hint not to press the matter any further, Kakashi quickly changed the subject. The adults were now focused solely on each other which left Sasuke and Naruto in awkward silence. The two refused to start a conversation, even just small talk. 

Naruto almost sighed in relief when they were finished with the meal. However, much to his dismay this apparently didn’t mean they’d be leaving. Kakashi herded Iruka to the living room to have a cup of coffee. 

“Sasuke, why don’t you show Naruto your room?” Kakashi obviously was trying to get rid of them.

“Kakashi,” Sasuke started, a hand on his hip.

“Don’t fight with me, Sasuke.” Kakashi’s voice was suddenly stern. Sasuke’s lips straightened into a line before turning swiftly and thumping up the stairs. Hesitantly, Naruto followed.

Sasuke grabbed his laptop from his desk and sat on his bed with his back to his headboard. “Wow, your room is so clean,” Naruto said, not hiding his surprise. The Uchiha just ignored him and focused on his laptop. 

“What are you doing?”

“Homework,” Sasuke replied shortly without even looking up.

“I didn’t know you were a nerd,” Naruto grumbled and collapsed in the desk chair.

The focused teen simply tweaked an eyebrow at the insult but continued ignoring the blond. 

Bored, Naruto decided to just snoop around the room. There was a music collection compiled of a very strange assortment of genres next to his wardrobe. Half of it seemed to be hard rock albums while the other half was indie music Naruto suspected a pothead would listen to. 

“Do you have a different music genre for each kind of drug you take?”

“Probably,” Sasuke grunted but finally looked up from his laptop. “Let me guess, you listen to country and pop.”

“N-no!” Naruto spluttered, his cheeks flushing again. “I like...everything.” 

The other teen rolled his eyes, “Of course you do.”

“Why are you always such an ass?” Naruto finally snapped. He sunk back into the computer chair in exasperation. This only made the other teen’s smirk widen.

“Because you’re an idiot,” Sasuke countered, a lame insult but he didn’t seem to care. “And my idiot “dad” is trying to bone yours.”

Naruto looked like he would pass out at those words. “D-don’t say that! And Iruka isn't my dad.” The blond covered his ears and his face turned bright pink. 

“You’re such a child,” Sasuke scoffed. “Don’t tell me you’re still a virgin,” Sasuke smirked. The answer was all in Naruto’s shocked and embarrassed expression. “So predictable.”

Naruto thought about denying the accusation but knew it would not be convincing. “Dick.”

Sasuke shrugged and shut his laptop, the arrogant smirk still dancing on his face. “Despite being so pure and innocent, you should still have realized that Kakashi wants to fuck Iruka. Why do you think we've been shunned up here?” 

“Stop saying that!” Naruto shrieked a look of pure disgust on his face. His hands covered his ears and threw his head back.

The Uchiha reached over the blond to pull open a desk drawer. Naruto’s jaw dropped at all the drug paraphernalia that he did not even bother hiding from view. This did not seem to phase the other teen as he simply pushed open the window and sat on the sill. Noticing the blond pursing his lips as he lit the cigarette, Sasuke rolled his eyes and blew smoke in the idiot’s face.

“It’s just a cigarette, moron.” Sasuke groaned and inhaled deeply, now facing away from the blond. 

“Just a cigarette?” Naruto mocked.

“What a saint,” Sasuke said without any emotion. “Maybe you wouldn’t be so annoying if you’d have a smoke.” The blond simply narrowed his eyes at the Uchiha. “What, are you scared?” The smirk was back on Sasuke’s face.

“Fuck you,” Naruto grumbled and swiped the cigarette from Sasuke’s hand. He eyed the cancer stick for a few moments of hesitation but as time passed he could practically feel the bastard’s smirk burning into him. Putting the cigarette to his lips, he took a small puff. Immediately, it felt like his lungs were on fire and he erupted into a fit of coughs.

While Sasuke laughed cruelly and Naruto was still trying to catch his breath, neither noticed the footsteps approaching.

Suddenly, the door swung open and Iruka and Kakashi stood in the doorway - completely flabbergasted as the first thing they saw was Naruto, with the cigarette still between his fingers. 

Sasuke’s cruel laughter hadn’t died out at the appearance of the adults. Naruto, on the other hand, panicked and in anger threw the cigarette back at the Uchiha. “You fucking bastard!” He shrieked, thinking it was a setup, that Sasuke knew Iruka was on his way to take him home. Overtaken by anger, he attempted to punch the Uchiha but Sasuke proved again that he was too fast and dodged it. However, as the other teen moved out of the way, he seemed to forget that he was perched on a window sill. With a small pitiful yelp, Sasuke fell from the sill backward out of sight.

Naruto and Iruka erupted into screams both thinking that the blond had killed Sasuke - not realizing that window simply leads out to the roof that inclined quite gradually. 

“Sasuke!” Iruka yelled and peered out of the window. He was surprised to find Sasuke just casually laying on the roof. 

“Oh thank God, I thought Naruto killed you,” Iruka gasped in a moment of sheer relief. “Come on, we’re leaving,” Iruka growled and tugged Naruto out of the bedroom.

Kakashi shot his ward a disapproving look before following the two out of the room. From his position, Sasuke could hear the adults conversing as Iruka ushered Naruto into the car. “Sorry about Sasuke,” Kakashi’s voice seemed embarrassed. 

Iruka seemed to take a deep breath, “No, it’s okay. Naruto just seems to always get into trouble.” 

Kakashi hummed in agreement, “I often feel the same about mine.” 

“Well, dinner was nice at least. Thank you for inviting me,” Iruka’s voice seemed less annoyed and was back to being warm and cheerful. The rest of the conversation Sasuke was no longer interested in hearing as he crawled back through the window and shut off the light to his room, taking care to lock the door as Kakashi would surely try to lecture him.


	4. The Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kiba throws a party for the new soccer team

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! I'm back with a delayed chapter. Some warning: There's some alcohol drinking and some homophobic slurs at the end. 
> 
>  
> 
> Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

After a week of tryouts, Naruto made it onto the soccer team. Gai had complimented his stamina and persistence saying they could work on his weaknesses. The majority of team members seemed thrilled to have him on the team, even if they found him a little obnoxious. Kiba, in particular, was on top of the world to discover the news that Friday afternoon.

Apparently, every year Kiba put together a crazy party celebrating the soccer season. That’s how Naruto found himself standing outside Kiba’s house at 11:30 pm, nervously wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans. This would be his first high school party. Naturally, it took him nearly half an hour to even decide what to wear. He ended up in a vibrant orange v-neck with his nicest pair of dark blue jeans and some vans.

“Naruto?” A curious voice called out from behind him. “Are you going in or just going to stand there all night?” The voice belonged to Sakura. 

The pink haired teen looked amazing as usual. Her hair was done in long curls cascading down to the middle of her back. She was wearing a black mini skirt and a white lace crop top. Her glossed lips curled in a teasing smirk. Ino was standing next to her, looking unsure as she looked at the crowds of kids through the window, dance music blasting so loud they could hear it from outside.

Naruto felt a blush creep up his cheeks at the sight of his long-time crush. “Ah, I’m going in!” He said lamely. Sakura grabbed his clammy hand and pulled her two friends through the front door.

The entryway was chaotic. Teens lined the walls, most waiting for the bathroom. Naruto quickly averted his eyes from a couple fiercely making out against the wall. “Get a room!” Karin’s drunken voice growled as she appeared from the bathroom. The couple quickly split.

Karin’s face transformed into a mischievous grin and looked Sakura up and down. “Well look who finally made it!” The redhead’s hands were cradling a plastic cup and her glasses slid down her nose as she drunkenly waltzed up to the three.

“You’re too sober,” Karin sighed, looking at Sakura with disdain. They could smell the overwhelming smell of vodka on her breath. “Let me make you guys drinks!” Karin exclaimed, happily pulling them along to the kitchen as if she owned the place.

Karin didn’t have to make drinks as much as she scooped punch from a suspicious looking tub. Sakura eyed it as if she didn’t quite trust the liquid thrust at her. “Don’t be such a party shitter,” slurred with a roll of her eyes. 

Naruto laughed half-heartedly and accepted his drink. “Thanks,” he offered politely and took a sip. It wasn’t bad, per se. Just a strange, sour taste as if it had everyonjuice imaginable mixed in. There was no mistaking the strong taste of alcohol either. Karin laughed as the blond’s face twisted in surprise.

“Naruto!” Kiba’s voice rang out and wrapped his arm around his best friend’s neck. “Finally! I’ve been waiting for you,” the smell of beer hit Naruto’s nostrils. Apparently, he had a lot of catching up to do. Naruto took a big gulp of his drink, eager to get on his friend’s level.

“You’re my partner for beer pong!” Kiba yelled, and dragged his friend away from the three girls.

In the basement, a ping pong table was set up with pyramids of red cups, surrounded by a group of guys. In the back of the room, Naruto spotted Suigetsu and Juugo sitting on a couch smoking a joint while in a seemingly heated discussion.

“It’ll be me and you against those two clowns,” Kiba gestured at Lee and Neji unsteadily.

Naruto had never played beer pong before. However, he managed to hold his own. Probably because he was soberer than any of the other teens. By the end of the game, he felt pretty tipsy though. Kiba celebrated their win by going to get shots and more drinks for the pair.

As Kiba headed up the stairs, Suigetsu’s voice rang through the air. “Naru, over here!” Nobody had ever called him ‘Naru’ before so at first, he didn’t realize it was aimed at him until the shark-faced boy repeated himself.

“What’s up?” Naruto asked, a little nervous as he approached the two - there was something about Sasuke’s friends that made him uneasy. They always looked at him as if he was the butt of some weird joke.

Juugo eyed the blond contemplatively, “Your last name is Uzumaki?”

Naruto simply nodded, downing the rest of his third drink.

“Did you know Karin’s last name is Uzumaki too?” Suigetsu flashed a grin. “Are you related?”

The question threw Naruto off guard. The shock was expounded by his tipsy state. “Uh, I dunno.”

“Speak of the devil,” Suigetsu’s grin grew even larger as Karin descended the stairs,

Karin eyed Suigetsu suspiciously. She looked like she was just dying for an excuse to throw her drink in the shark boy’s face. “Why d’you guys look so...weird?” Karin gestured to the three of them. 

“We’re discussing whether or not you and Naruto are related,” Juugo offered plainly.

Naruto’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Woah, why would we be related?”

“You have the same last name,” Juugo’s voice sounded almost bored.

The redhead’s face flushed, suddenly looking a little panicked. “I’m sure it’s just a coincidence! There’s no way,” She waved her hands in a dismissive gesture.

Suigetsu cackled. “Oh? Don’t tell me,” he tapped a bony finger against his lips as if contemplating something serious. Karin shot him a warning glance that wasn’t missed by Naruto. “You were hoping to fuck Naruto?” 

That seemed to set redhead off. Her hand clenched her cup so hard that it cracked before chucking it at Suigetsu who ducked just in time. The drink spilled on the wall behind him.

“You sick bastard!” She shrieked.

Juugo gave the two a pleading look, “Again, can we have just one night where this doesn’t happen?”

“It’s not my fault Karin has some weird incestuous feelings for her brother here.” Suigetsu shrugged, that playful grin still dancing on his face.

“He’s not my brother,” Karin yelled again and stomped away. 

“She’s a fucking time bomb,” Suigetsu moaned, picking his beer can up from between his feet on the ground and taking a sip.

“Well, you’re always instigating something,” Juugo reasoned. Naruto couldn’t help but laugh at the dynamics between the three. They were an odd combination.

Kiba returned shortly after with two shots and two red cups cradled in his arms. He handed one of each to Naruto. “Cheers.”

As they took their shots of vodka, Sasuke strolled down the steps. The Uchiha was a sight to behold. He looked high out of his mind. His usually perfectly kept hair looked as if he just rolled out of bed. The zipper to his black ripped skinny jeans was down and his long-sleeved t-shirt slipped to the right exposing a pale bony shoulder. 

Needless to say, nobody had a doubt as to what Sasuke had previously been doing. Despite his unkempt appearance, the Uchiha still managed to have that alluring aura around him that made it hard to look away.

“Jesus,” Kiba snickered at the sight. “Wonder who he’s been fucking.”

Naruto blanched at the callousness of his best friend. Surely, the Uchiha wasn’t enough of an asshole to cheat on Sakura.

Sasuke seemed to spot his teammates on the couch and stumbled his way over. For some reason that he couldn’t explain, Naruto felt like reaching out to Sasuke in fear that the high teen would keel over at any moment.

“Where’ve you been?” Suigetsu blatantly ran his eyes up and down his best friend’s body questioningly.

“None of your business,” Sasuke glared, albeit his words came out in a stream of intoxicated slurs.

Juugo stood up and ushered the drunk to the couch. “I’ll get some water,” he grunted and disappeared up the stairs.

Drunkenly, Sasuke stole the beer out of Suigetsu’s hands and chugged it. 

"Uchiha, XYZ." Kiba cackled.

Sasuke seemed to out of it to understand. His dark, ebony eyes just narrowed suspiciously. "What?" Even drunk, he still managed to sneer hatefully.

"Examine your zipper, you lush." Kiba gestured to Sasuke's crotch.

The group laughed as Sasuke looked down and an expression of pure horror flit across his face. "Shit," the Uchiha murmured and quickly zipped up his pants. Suigetsu rolled his eyes.

"What are you looking at?" Those angry yet mesmerizing eyes were now on Naruto. 

"Uh, nothing," Naruto lied, flustered that he was caught staring. He had been trying to figure out why the Uchiha was acting so strangely. Contemplating if he was okay. 

"Fuck, you guys need to drink more," Sasuke complained uncharacteristically. "Maybe then you wouldn't be staring at me."

Suigetsu grinned, a pointy tooth sticking out behind his lips. "You're such a needy guy when you're drunk, Sasuke." 

"Shut up," Sasuke bit back. 

"What a diva," Kiba sighed. "Let's go upstairs and see what the girls are doing."

The blond shot Sasuke one last look to see Suigetsu's hand flirtatiously squeezing the dark-haired boy's knee. Dismissing the sight as just drunk behavior, Naruto followed his friend up the stairs.

Sakura's pale cheeks were rosy red, obviously quite tipsy when they found her. "Have you seen Sasuke?' She asked, not bothering with greetings.

"Oh, yeah. He's downstairs. He's pretty shitfaced," Kiba shrugged. 

"As usual," Sakura sighed.

"He does that often?" Naruto asked

Sakura ran a hand through her hair, "Yeah, every time we're at a party. He can't control himself."

"Obviously," Naruto laughed a bit. "What a lightweight."

Tenten appeared at Sakura's side, "We're going downstairs to play spin the bottle. Wanna join?" 

Sakura hesitated. "Oh, no. I don't think Sasuke would appreciate that. I'll come downstairs though."

Once more, Naruto followed the group of teens to the basement. He wasn't super eager to see the miserable Uchiha though so he decided to stay out of his path. 

"Suigetsu, Juugo, we're playing spin the bottle," Kiba barked.

"Alright!" Suigetsu cheered and took a spot on the floor next to Karin who immediately complained about their seating arrangement. "If I'm sitting next to you there's less of a chance the bottle will land on you," Suigetsu explained matter-of-factly.

"I don't think that's how it works," Tenten commented and the group of teens laughed.

Naruto was pretty drunk. He didn't know that many people so he found himself anxiously downing his drinks faster than would be wise. Sakura and Sasuke watched from the sidelines, Sakura nestled into her boyfriend's side with her arm around his waist. She clearly did not mind his bed swept hair or disheveled look.

The game started and Naruto felt his stomach twist every time the bottle swung close to him. Across from him, he could see Karin's anxious face and her quick glances at Sasuke. What the hell was everyone's obsession with Sasuke? It was nauseating, even when he was shitfaced. No, especially when he was shitfaced.

Several rounds came and went without landing on Naruto at all. However, after what seemed like everyone had their turn it finally landed on the blond. 

Sakura nudged Naruto from behind with her foot and for a moment he was hopeful that it was her, forgetting that she wasn't even playing. "Naruto, you're up," she had a mischievous grin when he turned to look at her. When he turned around, a girl he didn't recognize was kneeling in front of him. 

She grabbed him by the shoulders and placed her lips on his. It was a brief yet sensual kiss, though Naruto felt nothing from it. Her tongue entered his mouth but as quickly as it happened, the girl was back in her spot. It was as if nothing happened.

As the others urged him to spin the bottle, Naruto felt his palms get even more sweaty. His heart sped up and he wasn't really sure why. It was just a game. Why was he so nervous? Regardless of his nerves, he pressed forward and spun the bottle. The coke bottle spun for what seemed like 1000 rotations before it landed diagonally from him on no other than Suigetsu.

Now, for the whole game somehow, they avoided the bottle picking someone of the same sex. Naruto sat, frozen, unsure of what would proceed. Sakura broke the silence, "Now what? The girl to the right of Suigetsu?"

Naruto exhaled in relief. However, the good feeling was short lived as Suigetsu piped up. "Sakura," the shark-faced boy whined, "that's cheating."

Karin's eyebrow visibly twitched, "How the fuck is it possible to cheat in spin the bottle?" She looked like she was ready to throttle him again.

Ever the diplomat, Juugo stepped in. "It's just a game. Get on with it."

Suigetsu grinned in victory and motioned Naruto over a little too eagerly. Naruto glanced around the room nervously. Everyone was chuckling at the awkward situation and the blond felt his face heating up. Sakura pushed him toward Suigetsu, "Go on, Naruto," she teased. 

His face felt as though it was on fire as he drunkenly walked over to Suigetsu and crouched. The other teen seemed way too eager and it made Naruto's stomach turn, his blush worsened as he saw Suigetsu lick his lips in preparation. 

Slowly, he leaned in toward the older teen. He only intended on a quick kiss but Suigetsu's hands found his face and drew him in. Behind them, the others were whistling and laughing. Naruto tried to back away but Suigetsu's grip was surprisingly strong.

When their lips finally parted, Naruto gasped for air, his eyes watering. There was an obnoxious guffaw of laughter and someone shouted, "I didn't know the new kid was a fruitcake." 

The derogatory comment sparked even more laughter. Even Sakura was laughing, her head drunkenly resting on Sasuke's shoulder. As he looked around the circle, the only one not laughing was Sasuke who was just staring at Suigetsu with an odd look on his face. As more homophobic slang was thrown around the room, he felt like the room was running out of air. Without another thought or a word to anyone, he hurried up the stairs.

As much as Naruto wanted to leave, Kiba was his ride and he didn't want to ruin the good time he seemed to be having. He didn't know why he was so embarrassed. It's not like he cared what those jerks at the party thought of him. 

From the top of the stairs, he could still hear the other teens laughing. Deciding he didn't want to wait for Sakura to apologize half-heartedly or to face being the butt of more jokes, Naruto escaped out the sliding door to the backyard but only after grabbing a bottle of vodka. 

The backyard was just as meticulously decorated as the rest of the house. Naruto sat on the end of the patio where it gave way to the perfectly manicured lawn. He must have been out there for 10 minutes before he heard the door slide open. He half-expected and even hoped it to be Sakura coming out to apologize to him. However, much to his surprise, it was Sasuke.

At first, Sasuke looked surprised to see him but then the usual smirk graced his features. He slinked over to a patio chair and slumped into the seat casually. "Finally realized Sakura is not the saint you've always thought she was, huh?" Sasuke drawled with an intoxicated slur as he lit a cigarette and brought it to his lips.

"You'd like that wouldn't you?" Naruto countered, not in the mood for Sasuke's normal douchery. Sasuke only snorted and rolled his head back into the chair with his eyes closed. "What's your problem with me anyway?"

"I'm just trying to help you," Sasuke replied with a feigned shocked expression. The two boys fell into silence, Sasuke puffing on his cigarette, one of his knees tucked into his chest.

"Think Kakashi and Iruka hooked up yet?" Sasuke asked idly.

Naruto groaned, "I don't want to think about that." Sasuke chuckled darkly.

The presence of his new rival did not make the blond feel any better. It was a frosty night out as it was that time of the year where it got cold at night but burning hot in the daytime. The noise from inside the house was now muffled and from his position on the patio, he could hear the laughter of the other teens. Neither of the teens outside said much for a few minutes, just quietly keeping their thoughts to themselves. Naruto was the first to break the silence.

"Aren't you cold?" Naruto asked, eyeing Sasuke's outfit that lacked any real protection against the chilly weather. The vodka must be getting to his head.

"Worried about me?" Sasuke gasped as if flattered. The blond merely rolled his eyes and took a sip from the bottle of vodka. "Ah, no chaser. I didn't know you drank like that." It was as if Naruto could hear the smirk on the other teen's face.

"Want to play a game?" Sasuke's voice was suddenly much closer. Somehow without Naruto noticing, he had sat next to Naruto on the edge of the patio and took the bottle of vodka from the blond's hand and took a swig.

The blond eyed the teen next to him suspiciously before shrugging and taking back the bottle. "Fine, whatever."

"Never have I ever been homeschooled," Sasuke started.

With a glare, Naruto took a sip from the bottle. "Never have I ever cheated on my girlfriend."

The bottle was wrenched from the blond's grasp with a smirk. "Never have I ever kissed a boy."

Naruto's face turned bright red and hesitated before taking a drink from the bottle.

Unexpectedly, Sasuke took the vodka back and took a long swig. His face was flushed with the amount of alcohol. "Fucker," Naruto grumbled.

"Never have I ever," Naruto paused, thinking of when he first saw the Uchiha that night, "done drugs harder than pot."

Not even thinking twice about it, Sasuke chugged the vodka. Naruto was feeling rather drunk at this moment. He couldn't imagine how Sasuke was even still coherent. 

The Uchiha chuckled, surprising the blond as it was surprisingly benign. "I think you should stop drinking." Then, Sasuke did something even more out-of-character. He hiccuped. It was the daintiest, squeakiest hiccup Naruto ever heard. He couldn't help bursting into laughter.

Sasuke glared at Naruto whose laughs were unceasing. He nudged the idiot with an elbow warningly. 

"That was so cute," Naruto stuttered out between laughs. Sasuke's cheeks grew faintly pink. 

When the laughter died down, Naruto found himself so close to Sasuke that their lips were nearly touching and he couldn't seem to break away. The alcohol-laden breath of the Uchiha hit Naruto's lips, the scent of vodka filling his nose.

Out of nowhere, the sound of the sliding door flying open and banging against the edge of the frame interrupted them.

"What's going on here?" The voice was familiar but thick and cracked. 

"S-sakura?" Naruto gasped, fully realizing how the situation looked. "I swear-"

"You f-faggot," Sakura spat out, filling Naruto like poison. For a moment, he felt numb and all of a sudden, a pool of vomit lay at his shoes. By the time he turned back around, Sakura had left and Sasuke was staring at him, uncharacteristically shocked.


	5. The Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sasuke deals with the aftermath of the party...kind of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! Thank you so much for reading the last chapter and being so encouraging. I hope I do not disappoint! There is some sexual content in this chapter so be warned.

"You have to tell Sakura the truth," Naruto's bright blue eyes looked pleadingly into Sasuke's soul. 

For the past week, both Naruto and Sakura incessantly tried to corner Sasuke. The idiot wanted Sasuke to explain the situation to Sakura while the other wanted to repair their "relationship". Sasuke wanted neither of those things so spent his entire week trying to avoid the two.

"I don't have to do anything," Sasuke sneered.

In an instant, Naruto pinned Sasuke by the shoulders to the wall of the bright green lockers behind him. "You bastard! She won't even talk to me." The blond's fist cocked as if to hit him.

Sasuke couldn't prevent the malicious laugh escaping. "I told you, Sakura isn't as sweet and innocent as you thought."

Cobalt blue eyes clenched shut in frustration, the blond looked to be struggling to keep it together. Without another warning, Naruto hit Sasuke across the face.

Knocked back into the lockers behind him, Sasuke sunk to his knees as he cradled his cheek that was already swelling. Despite the crowd of people Sasuke couldn't stop laughing, a satisfied smirk splayed across his lips, taunting.

"You fucker," Naruto growled going back for another hit, "You ruined everything." The blond's voice cracked pathetically, angry tears rolled down the tanned cheeks. 

Before Naruto could punch the Uchiha again, a hand caught him by the forearm and jerked him back. "Mr. Uzumaki," the voice was deep, cheerful with a hint of steel, "Principal Sarutobi will be expecting you in her office."

"But Mr. Hatake, he started it!" Naruto wailed childishly.

Kakashi shook his head, "While I believe you, that doesn't change the fact that you punched another student." 

The blond couldn't resist hitting his locker in frustration before turning around and stomping his way to the Principal's office. 

"Temper, Mr. Uzumaki," Kakashi called after him in warning before turning to his ward who looked dazed on the ground. "You okay, Sasuke?" Kakashi's voice was wary.

"I'm fine," Sasuke knocked the hand away, not moving from his position on the ground.

"Good. I'm taking you to the nurse's office and then you're going to spend first period with Dr. Shizune."

Dr. Shizune was the levelheaded Social Worker who forced Sasuke to skip a class period in her office every now and then. He never really saw the point but found avoiding Kakashi's relentless nagging to be well worth a free hour out of class. 

Dr. Shizune was sitting behind her desk sipping tea and shuffling through paperwork when he arrived. The office was filled with rosters, papers, and textbooks. It resembled more of a library devastated by a tornado than an office. On her desk stood a picture frame protecting a photo of her and a pig, who he learned early on was called ‘Tonton'. 

"So, Sasuke, I heard you got into a…altercation." The brown-haired woman who looked to be in her 30s pointedly stared at his swelling cheek hidden under his ice pack.

Sasuke shrugged and sat in the seat across from her desk, backpack cradled in his lap.

"Care to share?" Dr. Shizune sipped her tea with a small smile. 

Sasuke only shrugged again. Seemingly unbothered by his lack of response, Dr. Shizune went back to shuffling through paperwork.

Sasuke could tell that she was waiting for him to say something, to break the heavy silence in the room. As if he'd give in.

"I figured not," Shizune chortled. "Well, how about I just ask questions and you respond. That usually works for us, right?" She only received his usual shrug in response.

"I heard you and Sakura broke up. Is that true?"

"I guess," Sasuke breathed after a moment's pause. Vague but the reply seemed to satisfy the nosy woman.

"Does it have anything to do with Naruto Uzumaki?" 

"Why?"

"Well, he was the one who hit you just a moment ago. I think it is a safe assumption on my part. Also, there are some rumors flying around."

How the hell was the class Social Worker privy to rumors? "You believe rumors?" Sasuke sneered.

"Not really," Dr. Shizune chuckled. "But, I do hear some things. My job is to listen after all."

"Yet, you're the one doing all the talking," Sasuke grumbled.

"And why do you think that is?" Dr. Shizune laughed, an eyebrow raised.

"Because you like to hear yourself talk."

"Well, there's an easy fix for me talking too much." 

Sasuke narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the social worker.

"You could talk more," Dr. Shizune suggested, a triumphant look on her face. "That would certainly shut me up."

Sasuke felt extremely frustrated by the conversation. This whole thing was pointless. Her questions were relentless and even if he were to answer her truthfully it wouldn't change anything.

"So, why do you think Naruto is upset with you?" Dr. Shizune carefully probed.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the counselor suspiciously. "Who cares?"

"Oh, so you don't care that he just punched you? Your teammate."

"No," Sasuke snorted with an eye roll. "He's an idiot not even worth my time."

"For someone not worth your time, I hear that you spend a lot of time during practice arguing with him."

Fuck. She had a point.

"Do you think that your arguments will have an impact on today's game?"

"He can barely pass a soccer ball so no."

Before there was a chance for a follow-up question, the bell rang. Dr. Shizune smiled and shifted her papers as if she was taking notes on him the whole time. "It was nice catching up with you, Sasuke." Sasuke eyed the woman suspiciously before leaving her office. 

"Would you like to schedule your next appointment, Sasuke?" 

The fact the assistant knew his name made his skin crawl. "No."

When he finally escaped into the hallway, Karin, Suigetsu and Juugo were waiting for him by the door. "We heard Uzumaki punched you," Juugo said in his deep voice. 

Karin gasped at the look of his swollen cheek. The icepack in his hand was now dripping, fully thawing out now. As soon as Sasuke looked at her, Karin's attitude changed from caring to distaste. "How pathetic, getting beat up by someone like him!" Karin feigned a scoff.

"It was nothing," Sasuke shrugged and discarded the icepack in the trash carelessly. "I need a smoke," Sasuke grumbled. 

Suigetsu cheered and led the way outside to their favorite space underneath the bleachers by the field.

"What's up with that Uzumaki bastard?" Karin growled as she cooed over Sasuke's bruised cheek. Sasuke sent the girl a withering look and the redhead immediately backed away.

"I heard he kissed Sasuke at Kiba's party," Juugo offered nonchalantly, taking a puff from the joint.

"What?! We were at that party, how'd we not know?" Suigetsu snickered, immediately interested.

"He did not," Sasuke growled, stealing the joint as Juugo moved to pass it to Suigetsu.

"That's what Sakura has been saying," Juugo shrugged.

Karin hummed as if the situation was all cleared up, "So, that's why you two broke up?"

"Sakura's saying they haven't broken up," Juugo continued. Suigetsu fell back, shoulders shaking with laughter. Karin's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "She thinks Naruto forced himself onto Sasuke."

"Shit, she thinks you're a fucking saint," Suigetsu barked out in laughter at Sasuke.

"Are you guys done gossiping about me?"

"Y'know, we wouldn't have to gossip if you just told us shit," Suigetsu poked Sasuke in the ribs. 

Karin slapped the gray-haired boy's hand away, "Leave him alone, Suigetsu."

"Think you have a chance now that Sakura's out of the picture, eh?"

Karin's lips pursed as she glared daggers at Suigetsu.

The odd group of teens spent the rest of 3rd and 4th periods gossiping and seeing who could blow the best smoke rings. It was an easy win for Karin though. They settled into their usual routine of pointless, intoxicated conversations.

Juugo glanced down at his watch and began dusting off his pants. "It's almost 5th period."

"Since when have you cared about attendance, Juugo?" Suigetsu asked, confused at the sudden eagerness to get to class. 

Heaving his backpack over his shoulders, Juugo dismissed Suigetsu's question and set off back to the building. "Oh fuck, I have a test today!" Karin yelled dramatically and took off after Juugo.

"They're so strange," Suigetsu sighed. 

Sasuke leaned against the bleacher's support beams, a cigarette resting between his fingers carelessly. Suigetsu eyed the Uchiha up and down briefly before asking, "So, did Uzumaki kiss you?" 

There was something unusual in the shark boy's voice…jealousy?

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "No," he snorted, "Not like that is any of your business though." His voice was uncharacteristically soft which he attributed to the weed.

Suddenly, Suigetsu was way too close to him. "Sasuke," Suigetsu's voice was needy in Sasuke's ear. "Let me fuck you," he whined. Sasuke gave him an exasperated look but didn't fight as Suigetsu settled between his legs, kissing his neck.

If someone were to ask why he fooled around with Suigetsu, Sasuke wouldn't have an answer. He wasn't particularly attracted to the shark-faced teen. Convenience would probably be the readiest answer and it's not as if the sex was terrible. 

Their tryst started the beginning of the year when Sasuke was drunk out of his mind.

Sasuke was brought back to the present by a hand fumbling with the fastening of his jeans, wet lips mouthing at his jugular. Eagerly, Suigetsu forced Sasuke's tight jeans off and maneuvered Sasuke into his lap. Two wet fingers found themselves beneath Sasuke's briefs, caressing the puckered entrance before forcing their way inside. Sasuke couldn't hold in the gasp at the rough entry, the back of his head hitting a metal beam.

It took Sasuke a while to get into it, probably another result of the weed. Before long, Suigetsu's fingers pressed into the spot that made Sasuke's toes curl and relentless moans pour of his parted lips. 

Without warning, something long and hard replaced the fingers. "Asshole," Sasuke groaned. Suigetsu was too busy concentrating on the thrusting of his hips and the pleasure to listen though. 

The sex was selfish and quick. Neither were wrapped up in the pleasure of the other and before long, the two were spent. 

Suigetsu was still recovering when Sasuke was stepping into his jeans. "You came inside, you fucker," Sasuke growled, throwing Suigetsu's pants in his annoyingly sated face. He stomped off toward the school, desperate to reach a bathroom.

The bell for 6th period rang will he was in the bathroom cleaning up. From inside he could hear a commotion coming from the hallway. It was a girl and a boy fighting and from what he could hear he knew who it was.

When he left the bathroom's entryway, he saw Sakura who was facing away from him and Naruto across from her with that sad, pathetic look on his face. "Why don't you believe me?" Naruto cried, his voice cracked.

"I saw you," Sakura's voice was shrill and exasperated. Naruto hadn't noticed his presence yet. Sasuke found himself curious as to how this would play out.

"I didn't kiss him! We were playing a game and he leaned into me. That's when you came out," his voice was still small and pathetic. 

Sasuke knew by Sakura's body language that the blond was fighting a losing battle, she had already decided what happened at that party. The truth would not reach her. Sakura's words from the other night replayed in his head. Sasuke couldn't explain why it had affected him so much. Well, it was probably because he discovered his girlfriend was a fucking homophobe.

"Well, after that spin the bottle game, I'm not so sure," Sakura said maliciously.

"What does that mean?" Naruto was confused, big surprise.

Sakura sneered accusingly, "I didn't know you were gay. If I did I wouldn't have let you near my boyfriend."

Naruto gaped, at a loss for words. This was like a train wreck, Sasuke couldn't look away. "I'm not gay as if then I would even be attracted to that fucking selfish asshole!"

At those words, his blue eyes were fiercer than they were pleading and pathetic. Suddenly, that cobalt gaze shifted to Sasuke. The idiot knew he was standing there all along. "Tell her, you bastard."

"Sasuke?" Sakura breathed, her face bright red. 

The two other teens stared at the Uchiha expectedly, waiting to hear his version of events. "Does it matter?"

Sakura gawked, "Of course it matters. He came onto you!" 

The Uchiha was losing patience, fast. "I mean does it matter to Naruto." The two looked just as confused.

"Sakura is my best friend, she needs to know the truth," Naruto pressed desperately.

"Fuck, you're pathetic," Sasuke spat and walked past Sakura without even sparing a glance at her. His hands fisted the idiot's shirt collar. Frustration momentarily took control of his body. 

"What kind of friend calls her best friend a faggot? What kind of person calls anyone that?" Sasuke quickly let go of Uzumaki with a shove and storms down the hallway. 

Sakura chased him down and grabbed his elbow, "Sasuke, we need to talk-"

Sasuke shrugged out of her grip, "Sakura," his voice was low, "you're annoying." Sasuke left her standing there without a second glance.

As Sasuke made his way to his class, desperate to get away from his irritating ex-girlfriend, his phone buzzed in his back pocket.

It was a simple text message. "I have a client for you."

Sasuke walked out the school doors.


	6. The Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Naruto and Sasuke fight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi all! I'm back with another chapter. Happy Holidays!
> 
> I'm sorry for being so late. I wrote this chapter ages ago but wanted to have a chapter that wasn't so dramatic. Well, the rewritten version has even more drama so...whoops. Well, maybe not more but condensed. 
> 
> Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

A month later and life was back to normal. Well, a new normal at least. Naruto gave up on trying to talk sense into Sakura. Every time they saw each other in the hall, Sakura's face turned the color of her hair and walked the other way.

At lunch, the group disbanded. Sakura sat with Ino, Tenten and other girls. Sasuke sat with his normal motley crew. Naruto sat by himself for a while before he was approached once more by Hinata. At first, he was a little creeped out by her social awkwardness. Then, he was taken aback by her kindness as she invited him to sit with her friend group. Ironically, she and Kiba shared a lot of friends.

Soccer was a lot more stressful than he imagined. Still fun but he had never played organized sports before. The most experience he's had was in Konohamaru's backyard with neighborhood kids of varying ages. 

Naruto's rivalry with Sasuke was just as intense and one-sided as ever. Unlike Sakura, Sasuke did not shy away from confrontation and seemed undaunted by his previous awkward encounters with the blond.

The team had just come off the field from winning their first game. Spirits were so high even Sasuke's douchey nature was not as prominent. "Good game today, boys!" Gai encouraged as they sat in the locker room for a debrief. "It looks like we're going to have a great season."

Lee's cheer was so loud it bounced off the walls of the locker room. Naruto thought his eardrums burst. 

"While we won, we clearly still have some techniques and strategies to work on. I expect you all to fully commit to our practices from now on. Shikamaru, starting immediately, if you miss the practice before a game, you won't play." 

"Suigetsu, please make sure you drink enough water beforehand. You got too dehydrated out there which makes you tire out faster." Suigetsu only chugged more water at the suggestion.

"Naruto, your stamina is amazing and you did a nice job for your first game. We have to work on the sloppiness of those passes though!" Gai gave an enthusiastic thumbs up though, playing both good cop and bad cop.

Sasuke grinned maliciously at the blond, "Idiot."

"Shut up you bastard!" Naruto growled warningly.

"Sasuke, your technique was flawless as usual. Let's work on teamwork though. Nobody likes a ball hog."

"Or a stuck-up asshole," Naruto grumbled.

Gai continued going through everyone's strengths and weaknesses for a few more minutes. Everyone was exhausted and Naruto felt his eyes closing by the time Gai finished with a, "Off to the showers boys!" 

"Alright, guys, celebratory pizza and video games at my place!" Kiba announced as the team put their clothes back on.

Sasuke made to leave the locker room but Kiba caught him by the collar of his purple v-neck shirt, "No way, Uchiha. You're team captain. You HAVE to be there."

"I don't have to do anything," Sasuke sneered.

"Okay, well, I guess you're up to listening to another one of Gai's lectures on teamwork-"

"You wouldn't dare," Sasuke growled.

"I would," Kiba shrugged and looked toward Coach's office.

Suigetsu sighed, "Sasuke, let's just go for the pizza."

Sasuke looked like he'd rather do anything but socialize with the team. How did this guy become captain?

"Naruto, can Shika and I bum a ride?" Chouji's face seemed to be transformed into a shit-eating grin ever since Kiba announced free pizza.

"Sure!" The blond couldn't help but smile at his friend's eagerness. It felt good to have friends finally.

"Shotgun!" Chouji yelled and ran out of the locker room toward where Naruto's car was usually parked.

"How troublesome," Shikamaru grumbled and followed after with his hands in his uniform pockets.

Kiba's family was absent from the house as usual. Naruto would never have guessed that veterinarians were so busy before meeting the Inuzukas. Akamaru eagerly greeted them at the door, licking Kiba right in the face. "Gross, dog-breath," Naruto gagged humorously.

They made camp in Kiba's basement where he had the biggest television Naruto had ever seen. They played Mortal Kombat while waiting for the pizza to arrive. Naruto surprised himself with how good he was at the game. Of course, the one skill he had was pretty useless. 

Suigetsu and Sasuke arrived about an hour later, pizzas in hand. The shark-faced boy was also toting a suspiciously bulging backpack. "We brought the goods!" Suigetsu called as they made their way down the basement stairs. 

The group of teens cheered at the smell of the cheese, grease and baked dough. "I call the meat lover's pizza!" Chouji yelled over the excitement.

"Chouji, there's enough for everyone," Shikamaru warned his best friend. 

Suddenly, a shout interrupted all the eager and hungry teens in the room. "What the fuck is that?!" It was Kiba's voice followed by the pop of a can tab.

"Uh, beer?" Suigetsu replied, looking at Inuzuka as if he sprouted two heads.

"You can't have that here, my parents will kill me!" 

Sasuke's lips slipped into a lazy smirk at the outburst. "Kiba, nobody's going to know."

"Besides, didn't we all just get shitfaced here a few weeks ago?" Suigetsu chimed in.

Kiba didn't look appeased, "That was different. They were gone that weekend."

"If they come back, we'll just hide it again." Suigetsu shrugged and chugged the beer he was cradling nonchalantly. 

Chouij was already taking a sip of beer. Shikamaru pinched the bridge of his nose looking as if he just wanted to take a nap.

"Does it really have to be this dramatic?" Neji cut in, his violet eyes scalding.

"Do they have to always be drunk?" Kiba barked back, pointing at Suigetsu and Sasuke.

Sasuke idly threw a beer at Inuzuka's head. Naruto's mouth fell open, for some reason he didn't expect that. More shockingly, Kiba managed to catch it before it made impact with his forehead. "Kiba," Sasuke's words were firm and commanding, "Drink it. You need it more than any of us."

Suigetsu snickered, distributing beer to the rest of the team. While Naruto wanted to be a good friend and reject the offered drink, he also didn't want to be sober. "Thatta boy, Naruto," Suigetsu praised with a pat on the back.

Once the group got started drinking, Kiba seemed to relax. The team gathered around the television to watch a soccer game. To everyone's annoyance, Shikamaru incessantly critiqued the teams' strategy and technical skills.

It didn't take long before the teens were thoroughly drunk. The group fell into goofy alcohol-induced conversations, the soccer game long ago replaced by background music. 

"So, are the rumors true?" The question was vague but there was a hint of maliciousness and taunting in the tone when Kiba asked the question to Sasuke.

Dully, Sasuke stared blankly at the host. "What?"

"That you and Naruto kissed," Kiba elaborated as if what he was asking was obvious.

"Kiba!" Naruto yelled, though this time it wasn't goofy like it normally would be. "We did not!" There was hurt in his voice. Just when he thought the rumors passed, his asshole of a friend had to bring it up again. He had spent the past month dodging jeers and snickers in the hallway.

Kiba threw his hands up defensively, "Hey, I had to ask. There's been an even weirder tension between you two lately."

Sasuke merely sipped his beer and rolled his eyes before moving his gaze back to the music video playing on the screen.

"Really, bastard? Aren't you going to say anything? This is all your fault, y'know!" Naruto's voice was desperate again in a way that Sasuke clearly found pathetic.

"I thought we were over this by now," Sasuke's voice was bored. He didn't even bother taking his eyes off the screen.

The Uchiha had overturned his life just a month ago, and it was if he didn't care. Blood boiled and rage rose from his stomach like a monster, threatening to erupt. Blue eyes watched the pale, shaky hand lift the beer to that disgustingly indifferent face. Beer sloshed out as he clenched the can a little too tightly.

"What's your problem?" 

"Jesus, here we go," Kiba sighed.

"You're the one who brought it up," Suigetsu sang and watched the fight unfold raptly. 

"Well?" Naruto nearly yelled. His legs moved on their own so that he was blocking the Uchiha's line of vision to the television. 

"I am not the one with the problem."

"That's hilarious," Naruto laughed sardonically.

Sasuke's eyebrow raised curiously, "Oh, please elaborate."

Satisfied, Naruto gladly complied. "You treat people like shit, you are high all the time and you destroyed my relationship with my best friend for no fucking reason."

"I didn't destroy your relationship, you daft moron." Sasuke rolled his eyes, continuing to sip his beer without a care.

"What do you mean you didn't?!" Naruto's voice was an obscenely high pitch by now. Everyone watched on, enthralled.

"Listen, I don't give a fuck about what went down with you and Sakura. This conversation is pointless." 

"You bastard," Naruto growled, his voice found its bass back. His hands moved to the collar of the Uchiha's t-shirt and pulled him closer.

Sasuke smirked lazily and cocked his head to the side, "What, are you going to punch me again?" 

This seemed to do it. The rage boiled over and Naruto couldn't halt his fist from colliding with the Uchiha's face. It was as if everything went black, the anger taking over. 

Now, Sasuke was scrawny in comparison with Naruto. While he was leaner and faster, Naruto was taller and had more muscle. However, the way the blond was angled over the Uchiha made it easier for him to be flipped onto the floor.

Stars burst beneath his eyelids as Sasuke managed two good punches. Adrenaline drowned out the noise of drunken cheers and all the two teens could see were each other. Red warmth cascaded down the blonde's scarred cheeks like tears.

Surprised by the smaller teen's strength, Naruto grabbed hold of the Uchiha's collar again. With the blond leveraging to push the smaller body off of him, Sasuke's left hand caught him by surprise and twisted blond hair, snapping Naruto's neck back until his head hit the floor again. 

"Fuck," Naruto groaned, the taste of copper hitting his tongue. "Cheater!"

Sasuke smirked, victorious. There was a pause in the fighting. That smirk was taunting, daring Naruto to give up. 

"Asshole," Naruto growled. Copying the bastard's previous move, the blond grabbed the Uchiha's long black hair until it was tightly wound in his fingers. Surprising everyone in the room, the blond slammed their foreheads together.

"Fucking shit," Sasuke groaned and clasped a hand to his forehead, forgetting the fight entirely. "You moron!" 

Naruto grinned, pleased with himself. Though, the Uchiha remained unmovable somehow. 

A wolf whistle changed the whole atmosphere and now there were laughs coming from the teens circling the fight. 

That look of surprise on the Uchiha's face slowly transitioned to a more sinister, devious smirk, as if he was just told a juicy secret about the blond. "S-Sasuke?" Naruto gulped.

It looked as if Sasuke was holding in a laugh as his hands returned to their place in the silky blond hair. The blond remained frozen, unable to move as Sasuke lowered himself so his lips were only a breath away from his own.

The taste of crimson copper magnified as lips collided. Sasuke was kissing him. Teeth clacked in a cringe-worthy way. Somehow the smaller teen goaded Naruto's mouth open. It was a horrible kiss, to say the least. Naruto was brought back to the present by cackles of drunk teens.

"I told you!" One boy's voice rang out and Naruto was suddenly in his body again.

In the blink of an eye, the rage finally boiled over and the monster took control. Naruto was unable to quell the anger. Before he could stop himself, he found his fist colliding with Sasuke's face. Blood blossomed, splattering on the blond's face as the impact split the smaller teen's lip. 

Laughter sputtered from between Sasuke's lips, drawing another punch from the blond looming over him. The rest of the room went still, shocked. Suigetsu ran over and pulled Naruto off before he could get another punch in. An animalistic noise escaped from Naruto, startling even himself.

"Get ahold of yourself, man," Kiba laughed, though there was a hint of concern laced with the amusement.

The room was silent. Everyone seemed to be taking stock of the damage done by the fighting.

Naruto found himself horrified. Everything that had happened was just a blur. It was as if he was a ghost, watching from outside his own body. 

"Sasuke-" the name slipped from Naruto's lips but he wasn't sure what he was supposed to say. Did he even feel guilty for hitting the Uchiha? So many different feelings were bubbling where the rage once was.

Said teen didn't stay to let the blond find his words. Sasuke left without even cleaning the blood off his face. Nobody stopped him and only Suigetsu followed.

The fight seemed to sober the teens up pretty quick. "Well, I guess that's the end of that." Kiba announced, urging everyone to leave.

"I'm just going to clean up real quick." Naruto slipped into the basement's bathroom. 

His face was almost unrecognizable underneath all the blood. Fortunately, Uchiha barely packed a punch but he still managed to leave some swelling behind. His lip was split open though he was unsure when that happened. Maybe when the Uchiha kissed him? Fuck.

It took Naruto forever to scrub the blood off his face. Once he was done though, his face looked a thousand times better. There wasn't any excessive swelling or bruising. It could probably be covered by some makeup. After rinsing the sink bowl of all evidence of blood, he went to help Kiba clean up. 

"Oh, sorry. Let me help you," Naruto offered and picked up an empty beer can.

Kiba looked at the blond, an impressed grin on his face. "Woah, it's not as bad as I expected. I'm sure Uchiha looks way worse."

"Heh," was all Naruto managed.

"Look, man," Kiba started but paused, scratching the bridge of his nose. "I'm sorry I brought it up. I instigated that whole thing."

"Nah, don't worry about it."

"Seriously, I knew some shit was going down between you two but I can never keep my goddamn mouth shut." 

It was unlike Kiba to apologize. "What's gotten into you?" Naruto grinned and pushed the dog-faced teen playfully. "Are you about to confess your love for me or something?"

"No way, idiot!" Kiba barked defensively. "I'm just sayin'. I did too much back there."

"Yeah, well...Don't worry about it."

"Is gramps picking you up?" 

A weight dropped in Naruto's stomach. His grandfather would kill him if he knew he was in a fight. "Oh shit! I'm a dead man," Naruto whined, curling into a fetal position dramatically.

"Seriously, it's not that bad. Tell him it's from the game today."

"Oh, yeah," Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I should probably get going. I'm walking and gramps will kill me if I'm much later."

Kiba walked him to the door, leaning on the doorframe as he watched Naruto descend the porch stairs. "Hey," Kiba shouted once Naruto made it to the mailbox. "Uh, good job at today's game," Kiba grinned.

"Oh, thanks!" Naruto returned. 

The walk home was surprisingly chilly. Fall came earlier this year apparently. It took him almost an hour to walk home. By the time he made it through the front door, the tip of his nose felt like an icicle. "Jesus, why is it so cold?" Naruto grumbled.

"Where have you been?" A gruff voice came from the kitchen. Jiraiya was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping a bottle of beer. The sight reminded him to quickly pop a mint in his mouth to mask the smell of alcohol on his own breath.

"I was at the game. I stopped at Kiba's for dinner."

"Right," Jiraiya said, his brows furrowed and there was a slightly guilty look on his face. "How was it?" His grandfather clearly forgot all about today being the first soccer game.

Relief flooded his system, his grandfather had yet to notice how busted his face was. "It was fine," Naruto shrugged. "I didn't play that much. When I did though, I got nailed in the face with the ball."

Now that he was in control of the narrative, Naruto took his seat across from gramps. "Got this nice battle wound," he pointed to his face and forced a grin.

"Damn," Jiraiya nodded and handed his grandson his cold beer bottle. "Press that against your face. I'll go get you an icepack."

"Tsunade will kill me if she sees me holding a beer," Naruto eyed his gramps suspiciously. 

Jiraiya rolled his eyes and left the room. "Just don't drink it," his rough voice warned from in the kitchen.

"Yeah, yeah." Naruto slumped across the table lazily, cradling the beer to the area on his face with the most swelling.

"Did you win at least?" The obnoxious sound of ice cubes being jostled in the freezer almost overpowered the old man's voice.

"Yep."

"Good job! Did you get a trophy?"

"I'm not a baby, gramps! Trophies are an elementary school thing." Naruto sulked.

Jiraiya chuckled and appeared from the kitchen. He lightly smacked his grandson in the face affectionately with a makeshift icepack made with a sandwich bag, ice, and a towel. "No need to look so disappointed, kid. I'll bring you a trophy to the next game."

"You will not!" Naruto yelled defiantly. "So embarrassing."

Jiraiya took his original seat. "So, how's Sakura? It's been awhile."

The question was like a punch to the gut. Naruto's face felt like it had burst into flame. "Uh, I'm not sure."

"You two get into a fight or somethin'?"

That usual sheepish smile hinting at his discomfort appeared. "I guess, kind of."

"Iruka said he thought something weird has been up with you lately," Jiraiya nodded knowingly. 

"Snitch," Naruto grumbled and laid his head and ice pack on the table. He felt the ice cool into his bruised forehead as if de-clouding his mind. "She thinks I ruined her relationship with Sasuke."

"So that's why you punched him the other week? I thought you two were friends."

Naruto snorted, "Friends? He hates me."

"Might be because you punched him," Jiraiya interjected snarkily. 

"Or he's a giant douchebag." 

"Iruka seems to like him, he's a good judge of character."

"Gramps, you should know better than anyone why he likes Sasuke," Naruto said pointedly, gesturing at the grandfather as if just his essence as a person would give the answer. "You're a pervert," he added once Jiraiya clearly hadn't caught on, "and according to Sasuke, Iruka is trying "bone" his dad."

"Ah, that's why he's been planning playdates for you two." Jiraiya chuckled.

Naruto's face flushed despite the ice pack pressed against his face. "You're so fucking embarrassing."

"Fine, friendship with Sasuke is out of the question," The old man relented with a defeated sigh. Iruka's gossip apparently had people's hopes up.

"Please tell Iruka that," Naruto grumbled, exhausted.

"Nah, wouldn't do any good. His mind has been made up. You're already best friends in his mind." The two paused in silence. Jiraiya was never good at these deep, relationship discussions. On the other hand, he had been disturbingly thorough, eager even, for the "birds and bees" lesson when he was younger.

"Speaking of," Jiraiya began in a cautious way that made his grandson eye him suspiciously. "I had a last-minute conference pop up for next week. You're going to be staying with Iruka until I return."

That would mean gramps was missing his next game too. "What?! I'm almost 16 you old bag!"

Clearly, his grandfather expected this response. "Well, maybe once you start acting more mature you won't need a babysitter."

"Granny will be here!" Naruto interjected, his bottom lip stuck out in a pout.

"She's working overtime next week, she won't be around much," Jiraiya sighed. His hand swiped over his face, exasperated. 

"I don't know why I need a babysitter," Naruto grumbled.

"And I don't know why you can't go a month without getting into a fight and being suspended," Jiraiya barked back, his decision was final. "You're still grounded. Besides, Iruka's going to need help with Konohamaru."

"What? So you trust me to babysit Konohamaru but I still need a babysitter?"

Jiraiya snorted, "Listen, if you can go the rest of the year without fighting or coming home drunk," so Jiraiya did notice his intoxicated state the night of Kiba's party, "Then you can stay home whenever I go away."

 

"Whatever. I'm going to bed. See you tomorrow gramps," Naruto sluggishly trod his way to his bedroom without giving his grandfather a chance to respond. 

After washing his face and brushing his teeth, Naruto collapsed in his bed. He felt exhausted but his mind wouldn't stop racing over the past day. 

High school wasn't what he expected. Sure, he knew teenagers were dramatic. That didn't mean he expected to lose his best friend. Not to mention, his only other friend, Kiba, was acting like a total asshole. In a matter of two months, his entire friend group changed. 

Suddenly, his phone vibrated incessantly. It was a bunch of texts from Kiba. All they said was 'Hey' over and over again.

'Jesus, what?' Naruto texted back impatiently.

'Did you get the pic?' Kiba relented.

'What pic?' 

Without any further response, Kiba sent the picture he was clearly referring too. All breath flew from Naruto's lungs. 

It was a picture of a small teen on his knees, completely naked. A pale, large hand that obviously belonged to an adult grasped silky black, almost-blue hair pulling the other's neck back so his back was arched. While the teen's face wasn't entirely visible, it was easy to decipher who the subject of the image was.

'Isn't that Sasuke?'


	7. Firsts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snippets from Sasuke's first couple years living with Kakashi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Thank you everyone who's read so far and supported me with your comments. I really appreciate it! After this chapter, I should be back to my weekly posting.

Angry obsidian eyes that looked as if they wanted to tear the world to the ground stared up at Kakashi from underneath greasy shoulder-length black hair. The air was dry, bitter and unforgiving. 12-year-old Sasuke Uchiha was huddled in an alleyway, clutching the soft red scarf Kakashi had wrapped around his neck. 

"Let's go home," Kakashi's voice was warm against the freezing wind. His knitted glove-clad hand reached toward his new ward. Instead of anger and frustration, Kakashi looked down with a soft, forgiving smile. The young boy, too skinny and frail, grasped the offered hand tentatively. 

That was the first time Sasuke ran away but it wasn't the last.

\----  
A shriek followed by an eerie moment of silence. Then, as if a wounded animal escaping a predator, the shriek returned in full force. Kakashi never heard anything like it and even in the most tranquil of nights still fears he will hear it again.

Even sprinting down that short hallway that connected the two bedrooms, Kakashi pleaded his legs to move faster. Who was hurting Sasuke? But as he opened the door, nobody but Sasuke was in the bedroom. The young boy was asleep but like a sight from a horror film, he was thrashing and screaming without even waking.

This terror seemed to go on for hours but really it was only a few minutes. Then, those familiar obsidian eyes opened and looked confusedly at Kakashi who was sitting at the side of his bed anxiously. 

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke asked, his voice thick with a yawn that quickly followed. 

That was the first night terror witnessed by Kakashi.

\---  
"This is a phone call from Konoha Middle School. I am confirming Sasuke Uchiha's absence from school today..." Kakashi listened to the rest of the call in confusion. Sasuke just walked through the door, wearing his uniform nearly an hour before. Did he actually lie and skip school?

Kakashi threw his apron on his kitchen chair. What would he do - punish Sasuke? He was certain punishments wouldn't work. While he knew there'd come a time when he'd have to discipline his new ward and gone over it in his head relentlessly, he found himself completely unprepared.

His mind went back to what his father would have done - before he took his life that is. Kakashi grew up in a time period where spanking your kid was the norm but his father was too gentle to even attempt it. One time, his aunt spanked him for breaking one of her favorite dishes and his father mourned as if he had almost died.

His father dubbed one of the many dark corners of the house as a timeout corner but Sasuke spent a lot of his time staring at the ceiling that it probably wouldn't faze him. He was also subject to grounding, his father wouldn't even let him go to school functions. Sasuke didn't have friends to play with and always came right home after school.

While still unsure of a punishment, Kakashi figured he'd just confront the teen for now and find out what was up. "Hey, Sasuke," Kakashi called and entered the room without even knocking.

As usual, Sasuke was laying in his bed, staring up at the ceiling lost in his own world. Soft orchestral music was playing on his radio propped against the window. Kakashi couldn't help but wonder what images were flashing in the young boy's mind. Maybe he was better of not knowing.

The guardian took a seat at the desk chair gingerly, hoping Sasuke didn't sense his unease. He probably did though, kids were hypersensitive to these things. 

"Did you go to school today?"

The child was calculative as he measured Kakashi's expression. "Yes."

"I got a call saying you weren't at school today."

"They made a mistake," Sasuke replied mechanically.

"Mm, I don't think so," Kakashi hummed, "Where was your backpack when you returned home?"

"I left it at school," Lie. His backpack was sitting behind Kakashi but in his haste to respond, Sasuke didn't realize.

Kakashi gestured behind him to the bookshelf. "So?"

Kakashi was more unsure and disappointed than angry. He kept playing through his head how he would have prevented this. Fatherhood did not become him. It wasn't something he always wanted. He found himself Sasuke's guardian after a promise and a moment of desperation and guilt. Now, he was regretting it only because he was sure he'd fail. Such a cowardly feeling.

Sasuke's face turned completely expressionless. His eyes were dull and lifeless. Kakashi was frightened by the sudden change and when the frail boy got up, the guardian couldn't find the strength to move.

As if in routine, Sasuke kneeled in front of his guardian. He looked up expectantly. What did he want - no, what was he waiting for? 

Kakashi remained frozen, eyebrows raised in surprise. Sasuke rarely initiated any sort of contact, yet he was now closer than he's ever been in the past couple months. A small hand reached out and touched the clasp at the waistband of Kakashi's jeans. Those eyes, still dull, looked as if he was in a faraway place. 

The small snap of the clasp brought Kakashi back to the moment. Shocked, he stood up so abruptly that the chair fell back on the bookshelf. That loud noise startled Sasuke and he seemed to come back to his body as those eyes were filled with their usual anger but mixed with something unfamiliar. 

That was the first time Kakashi realized Sasuke could never really escape from his past.

\---  
Kakashi's old Honda Civic parked outside a house settled deep in the city's neighboring suburbs. It was in a wooded area at the end of an eerily empty street. Only a few houses lined the road. This would explain the ease in which a group of teens was able to hold a rager, unnoticed on a school night.

Teens stared at the old man as he just walked straight in through the door. A particularly bold brown haired boy strode up to Kakashi, a look on his face as if he just stepped in dog shit. "Fuck you doing here?"

"Where's Sasuke?" Kakashi asked without even looking at the boy. His eyes scanned the room for his ward.

"Probably fucking someone upstairs."

Not bothering with further questions, Kakashi walked up the stairs - impatiently taking two stairs at a time. As luck would have it, he found Sasuke in the first room at the top of the stairs. The 14-year-old was sitting on the end of a bed, making out with a guy who looked to be a few years older.

"Sasuke, let's go." Kakashi demanded from the doorway.

The older teen looked disgruntled at being interrupted but looked away sheepishly when he saw Kakashi's grey hair. 

Sasuke glared at his guardian, "What the fuck are you doing here?"

Kakashi disregarded the question. Instead, he turned to the older teen. "How old are you?"

"Uh, 18 years old," the boy responded as if it wasn't a promise.

"Jesus Christ. Did you know he's 13?" Kakashi pointed at Sasuke, livid.

"What? No! Of course not. He told me he was 18 too." Bullshit, Sasuke hadn't even hit his growth spurt yet. While the legal teen had the hint of a beard, Sasuke was skinny and still had his baby-face from his preteen years. The boy could barely even pass for his own age.

Kakashi grabbed his ward's arm with a threatening last glance to the older teen. Sasuke was relentless in his curses as he was dragged through the house to the car. 

"What the fuck, Kakashi?" Sasuke finally strung a coherent sentence together once he was in the passenger seat.

"Excuse me?" Kakashi gave Sasuke a look, daring him to continue. 

Apparently, Sasuke dared.

"Why do you insist on stalking me?"

"I'm not stalking you. I'm being a father," Kakashi growled, his patience waning.

"You're not my father."

"Fine, I'm being your guardian."

"Whatever," Sasuke shrugged, "Teens party. Don't tell me you didn't party at your age."

"I partied with kids my own age. I didn't drink alcohol. I won't let you do dangerous shit like this." Kakashi was losing his patience. Sasuke seemed resolute in destroying every effort Kakashi made to ensure the child was safe.

"Dangerous?" Sasuke laughed in a twisted, dark manner. "I don't think this is what this is about." 

"Sasuke," His voice was deep in warning but there was an undeniable quiver in the tone. "You have been acting recklessly. I know you skipped therapy today." 

"What are you going to do about it?" Sasuke goaded. 

"As previously discussed with your social worker, if you can't commit to your two therapy sessions a week you WILL go to Wellspring." 

"Fuck you. I told you, I'm not going to some glorified slut camp." The so-called 'slut camp' was actually a local nonprofit academy for youth survivors of human trafficking.

"Then go to therapy."

The ultimatum apparently didn't sit well with Sasuke. "Why are you so bent on me going to a shrink?"

"You need to get better."

"You don't want me to get better," Sasuke snarled in a way that reminded Kakashi of a wounded animal that was cornered.

Kakashi sighed, stubbornly keeping his eyes on the road. "Of course I want you to get better. Why do you think I go through all this trouble?"

"You want to fuck me." The words flew out without hesitation. "You're just like everyone else."

Kakashi's foot hit the brakes so hard, it was lucky that they were on a deserted back road or else they'd get rear-ended. "Are you nuts?" Sasuke shrieked, holding onto his seat.

"Do you really think that?" Sasuke only stared at him, his lips pursed in a way that indicated disgust. Kakashi shook his head as if defeated and put the car back into drive.

The rest of the ride home was silent. Sasuke stared out the window, angsty as usual, thinking about who the fuck knows. Kakashi's brain hurt trying to process everything. The closer they got to the apartment, the angrier Kakashi felt. 

"Go sit at the table," Kakashi growled as he parked in their dedicated space. 

Without a word, Sasuke complied while Kakashi bided time to calm his anger by making tea. The tension floated in the air so tangible it felt constricting. When Kakashi turned to address his ward, it seemed that the puzzle pieces fell into place. 

Seeing Sasuke sitting at the table, one knee drawn up to his bony chest while staring at absolutely nothing, made Kakashi realize just who he was really angry at. 

Kakashi placed a mug of black tea in front of his ward. "The caffeine will help your impending hangover," though he was unsure if that actually works. Sasuke accepted the mug with no sound.

"There's going to be some new rules around here," Kakashi began. Sasuke looked like he was going to protest again but Kakashi cut him off. "You may not like it but I am here to protect you and yes, even from yourself."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and leaned back in his seat, his head tilted to the side provokingly. "Sure."

"One, you will be home by 10 o'clock every night. Weekends included." 

"Bullshit."

"Two, I will meet all of your friends before I let you go out of this house with them. I will also be the one to drop you off and pick you up."

"What the fuck, Kakashi," Sasuke growled. 

Kakashi smiled good-naturedly, "That means, no more hanging out with guys who want to take advantage of you."

"Oh, please," Sasuke scoffed. "That moron was not trying to take advantage of me."

This was the tricky part. Kakashi felt the anger rising again, his face felt like it was on fire. For a moment, Kakashi just breathed, trying to compose himself, something that did not go unnoticed by Sasuke.

"I'm sorry, am I pissing you off?" Sasuke taunted with a smirk, obviously glad to be getting under his guardian's skin.

Kakashi breathed out, his fingers clenched his pants impatiently. "I won't let anyone hurt you, even when you're convinced they are harmless. You can deflect, taunt and fight all you want, I don't care." Kakashi stood up abruptly and took the barely touched mug from Sasuke. "Bed, now." 

That was the moment Sasuke first began to trust Kakashi.


	8. A Brief Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sasuke returns to school after the picture spreads

A week went past and he was finally allowed to go back to school. Sasuke was sure that he'd be the topic of conversation upon arrival. Facing gossiping teens was still preferable to laying around at home though. The night before his return, Kakashi had made a few unreasonable demands.

For starters, he had to spend lunch with Dr. Shizune every Monday and Friday. Kakashi also forbade him from hanging out with Suigetsu. He felt that the shark-boy was a bad influence. His least favorite new rule is that he had to ride to school with Kakashi every day. This meant that he'd have at least one hour idle before school.

"I still don't understand why I'm being punished," Sasuke yawned as he slumped into the passenger seat of Kakashi's Hyundai Sonata.

Kakashi gave Sasuke a smile, "Again, Sasuke, I'm not punishing you."

"Yeah, okay," Sasuke snorted.

"I just think you need a little more structure in your life."

"Since when?"

"Since I discovered that picture of you going around," Kakashi was no longer smiling.

"That picture meant nothing," Sasuke scowled.

Kakashi pulled out of the driveway, "It was child pornography." 

Sasuke paused as if he was mulling over the words that just flew out of his guardian's mouth. "I'm not a child."

"In the eyes of the state, you are."

"You mean in your eyes," Sasuke corrected.

"Both," Kakashi said, that joking-yet-serious smile back on his face. "Regardless of how old you feel, it's dangerous to have those photos circulating."

"I'm not circulating them," Sasuke groaned and threw his head back.

"Do you know who did?"

Sasuke ignored the question. He spent the rest of the ride staring out the window in silence, ignoring all of Kakashi's attempts at conversation.

"I have a meeting this morning but I'll see you in homeroom." Kakashi tossed Sasuke his backpack after retrieving it from the trunk. "Iruka is coming over for dinner today so I'll pick you and Naruto up after practice."

"Fuck, I am being punished," Sasuke huffed moodily and slung his backpack over his shoulder. He promptly left his guardian behind to brood in homeroom.

Sasuke whiled away the time slumped over his desk listening to music. He found himself dozing off in a dreamless sleep. 

"'Suke," a familiar snarky voice woke him from his nap. "Where've you been?" It was Suigetsu. 

Sasuke quickly looked around to make sure Kakashi didn't return yet. He'd never hear the end of it if he saw him talking to Suigetsu. 

"Fuck," Sasuke rubbed his tired eyes. "I've been out sick," Sasuke lied.

"Man, nothing a bit of that medicinal herb can't fix, right?" Suigetsu grinned. "We've got time."

"I can't," Sasuke replied shortly.

"Why not?"

"We can't hang out anymore."

"What?" Suigetsu looked disconcerted.

"Kakashi knows we've been fucking," Sasuke said, his voice soft.

Suigetsu's mouth fell open and at first, he was silent. "So? When has that wet blanket ever stopped you?"

"I'm not allowed to hang out with you."

The shark-faced boy bit his lip briefly, trying to wrap his mind around the words. If Sasuke thought that the teen actually cared about him, he'd say Suigetsu was about to cry.

"And Karin and Juugo?"

"They're not fucking me," Sasuke hissed in return.

A look of realization spread across Suigetsu's face, "Wait, does Kakashi think I spread those photos?" 

Sasuke merely shrugged in response.

"Why don't you tell them who it was?!" Suigetsu slapped his hand on the desk indignantly. The Uchiha raised a brow as if the answer was evident. "I get it." Suigetsu laughed darkly, obviously hurt. Without another word, Suigetsu gathered his things and stormed out of the room. Sasuke felt even more exhausted than before his nap.

Homeroom started to fill up more as students began trickling in from their buses. At the sight of the Uchiha, whispers broke out again. He heard some chuckling. As if he cared.

When Naruto arrived he took his seat without so much as a good morning to his rival. Ever since the fight, the blond refused to acknowledge Sasuke's existence outside of soccer. Blaming it on the maddening whispered gossip assaulting his ears, Sasuke felt himself craving the attention of the normally happy-go-lucky blond.

"Idiot," Sasuke called and turned in his seat. "I heard Iruka is coming over to fuck my dad tonight."

"Asshole!" Naruto growled, the bright blue eyes staring into Sasuke's, unwavering. 

Sasuke couldn't hold back the smirk from slipping across his lips, "Missed me?"

To his surprise, Naruto snorted in what almost sounded like laughter. "Yeah, right."

"True, you're probably closer to co-captain since I left."

Naruto grinned and nodded eagerly, "I have been impressing Coach lately."

"I'm sure," Sasuke said sarcastically and rolled his eyes.

When Kakashi returned to the classroom, Sasuke could tell that he was overjoyed that he was talking with Naruto. Naturally, the Uchiha swiftly turned around to face forward out of spite.

It seemed Kakashi gave the class a stern lecture before Sasuke returned because all the gossip stopped as soon as the teacher arrived and began the lesson.

Lunch came before he knew it and Sasuke made his way to Dr. Shizune's office. Before he could enter, Kiba cornered him by the door. 

"Yo, you coming to practice today?" Kiba did not look pleased as if it was Sasuke's choice he missed practice all last week.

Sasuke only nodded, shooting Kiba a look of disdain. 

"Good, we have a game this weekend. Don't fuck it up for us," Kiba warned with a glare.

Suddenly, Dr. Shizune opened the door with a strange, unreadable smile on her face. "Ready, Sasuke?"

Sasuke shot Kiba one last dirty look before he followed the counselor. He could tell Dr. Shizune had overheard his conversation with Kiba by that overly-polite smile so her first question was predictable.

"So, what did you fight with Mr. Inuzuka about?"

"Nothing, we weren't fighting."

"Hm, well, he looked upset." Dr. Shizune probed.

Sasuke didn't relent, "Everything's fine."

"It seemed he was confronting you for missing practice last week." Sasuke felt a vein in his forehead twitch in irritation. If she had known, why ask?

Sasuke shrugged apathetically. 

"Are you looking forward to returning to practice? I hear your next game is coming up." 

"I guess," was Sasuke's forced reply.

"Why don't you quit the team?"

This question sufficiently surprised Sasuke. The way his eyebrows skyrocketed toward his hairline evoked an appreciative laugh from the counselor. "You know, Sasuke, your acting could use some work. I know you don't like soccer."

Sasuke didn't hold back his glare. "Soccer's fine," he insisted.

"But do you enjoy it?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Do you think Itachi would be disappointed if you quit?" 

Heat seemed to well up in Sasuke's stomach, bile threatening to rise. His mouth watered in the way that foreshadowed sickness and he broke out into a cold sweat. Air choked from his lungs.

"Fuck you," Sasuke spat and abruptly left the room. Dr. Shizune tried to follow after the teen but quickly lost him.

The bathroom closest to the cafeteria was empty when Sasuke entered. He made a b line to the toilet where he dry-heaved, his stomach too empty to throw up anything more substantial than bile.

"Sasuke?" A voice echoed through the bathroom. "I heard what happened from Dr. Shizune." Kakashi knocked on the locked stall Sasuke was occupying.

The only response the father-figure received was the wretching of Sasuke's dry-heaving. "Let's go home, Sasuke," Kakashi's voice was soft and soothing, which only irritated Sasuke further.

By the time he got his shit together, Sasuke was sure he looked a mess. His hair felt damp from the sweat and his body felt like it was hit by a truck. If his appearance matched how he felt, Kakashi didn't let on.

On the way home, Kakashi was pretty quiet. He kept stealing glances at his ward with a look on his face like he wanted to say something. Sasuke pretended not to notice and focused on watching the trees pass by the window.

As soon as they got through the door, Sasuke retreated to his bedroom and Kakashi to the kitchen. Sasuke removed his uniform and changed into an old pair of sweatpants and a ratty t-shirt. 

When Kakashi peered into the room, armed with a cup of tea, Sasuke was curled in a ball under his comforter looking very small. He set the mug on the nightstand and placed a couple pain relief pills next to it, a routine they had mastered since Kakashi took in the young boy.

It was hours before Sasuke emerged it seemed. Sasuke tied back his hair carelessly. His head was groggy and his eyes were watery from the long nap he took. This was probably why he didn't hear the conversation and laughing happening at the kitchen table.

Sitting at Sasuke's usual spot was Iruka. Blue eyes were suddenly staring into his. First, there was a look of concern and then it was quickly replaced with that usual overly-cocky shit-eating grin.

"You really let yourself go, huh, Sasuke?" Naruto teased smugly.

Iruka chastised Naruto as Sasuke turned on his heel and stormed off upstairs. He was already back in his bed, curled up when Kakashi followed after him. 

"Sasuke, why don't you clean up and join us downstairs?" Kakashi asked, his voice hesitant as if he was prodding a snake, curled and ready to strike.

The teen sat up, strands of hair falling out of the haphazard ponytail. Onyx eyes glared at the older man. "I'm not hungry."

"You haven't eaten all day," Kakashi reasoned. Sasuke merely wrapped the comforter around his body tighter. "Can you at least try tea and crackers?"

Too tired to fight now, Sasuke trudged into the bathroom to brush his teeth and hair. His hair was greasy still but still less embarrassing than its previous state.

"I'm glad you decided to join us," Iruka said sincerely, his usual warm smile on his face. 

Sasuke took the seat farthest away from Naruto, at the end of the table surrounded by two empty seats. Kakashi seemed to appreciate the effort none the less and set down a hot mug of green tea in front of his ward.

"So, Naruto," Kakashi began, "What did Sasuke miss at practice today?"

"We just did some drills and went over some strategy for the game on Saturday," Naruto said thoughtfully, playing with the pieces of stir-fried chicken on his plate. "And, there was a fight," he added nonchalantly.

Iruka choked on a piece of food, surprised with how casual Naruto made it seem. "A fight?" 

Naruto waved his hands defensively, "I had nothing to do with it, I swear." Iruka sighed in relief.

"Boys take their sports pretty seriously, I suppose," Kakashi half-joked, a humorous smile on his face.

Sasuke sipped his tea, enjoying the bitter taste as he pretended to pay attention to the guests. Kakashi turned to his ward, that humorous smile still plastered on his face. "See, Sasuke? The team is falling apart without you." Said teen only rolled his eyes moodily.

Quickly growing tired of the polite small talk happening, Sasuke excused himself to his room. Kakashi seemed satisfied and didn't complain. 

His cell phone was flashing on his nightstand when Sasuke returned to the room. Two text messages were waiting for him.

'New client, VIP.'

'Where are you?'

The two messages repeated a few times. Sasuke was in the middle of replying when he noticed someone's presence at the door.

"Sasuke?" Naruto's voice was unusually cautious. 

"What do you want?" Was Sasuke's irritable as ever response.

"Relax," Naruto breathed out imploringly, "I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"What the fuck for?"

"Uh, for hitting you at Kiba's a couple weeks ago?" Naruto's eyes narrowed, confused as to how Sasuke could have so easily forgotten.

"This is about the pictures, isn't it?" Sasuke's mouth curled into a deep frown. "Well, I don't need your pity." He returned his focus back to his phone.

"I'm not pitying you, you asshole," Naruto growled, daring to draw closer to the bed.

"Yes, you are," Sasuke barked, not looking up from his phone.

"I think I would know."

Sasuke snorted, "Doubtful. You are the least self-aware person I have ever met."

Naruto clearly was losing his patience with this conversation. "What the fuck is wrong with you, bastard? I was just apologizing like a normal person!"

"Well, there's your first mistake," Sasuke sneered derisively, "You're not a normal person."

"Fuck you," Naruto looked like he was already about to punch him again.

"This whole charade is about the pictures. There's no way in hell you would be standing in my room apologizing otherwise." 

Naruto had nothing to say to this apparently, he just stood there with his mouth open.

"You're so obvious," Sasuke chuckled before continuing, "I don't need your pity though. You can go back to being Kakashi's perfect little future stepson."

"You're such an ass," Naruto accused lamely. "I was trying to be nice."

"Yeah, alright," Sasuke scoffed. "You just didn't want to be responsible."

"Responsible for what?"

"I don't know, whatever you think would happen after those pictures spread. Maybe you worried that I'd kill myself?" Sasuke cocked his head to the side, waiting to see if he crossed the line.

"That's fucked up." Mission accomplished.

The disturbed look on the whiskered face goaded him on, he hummed thoughtfully, "Or maybe it's not about a guilty conscious. Maybe you're curious. You saw that photo and wanted to know how it'd feel to fuck me." 

"You're sick," Naruto choked on the words. Sasuke only chuckled darkly at the accusation. With the conversation going nowhere and being thoroughly flustered, Naruto retreated back downstairs.

'I'll be there in 15' Sasuke texted back finally.

Then, Sasuke left with no intention of returning.


	9. Gone Boy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sasuke is gone and Naruto learns not to leave the search to the adults.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! I'm back again. We're winding down the story and I know I set it to 10 chapters but it's now 11 because the chapter from Kakashi's POV was not part of the original story.
> 
> Enjoy and let me know what you think! More discussion on human trafficking but other than that not much to warn about in this chapter.

Sasuke was gone. 

Nowhere to be seen. A little over a month and no news. Kakashi was barely at school so it wasn't as if Naruto could ask even if he was brave enough to broach the subject. Even Iruka was acting weird, dodging questions with a finesse only a teacher could have.

The school seemed to have moved on though. For the first two weeks of his disappearance, Naruto swore he saw his face plastered on every school surface. After the first few days, the police and administration seemed desperate for any kind of lead. 

Initially, Naruto heard his classmates joking about the pictures that were spreading like wildfire. Now, so many days passed that those images were nearly forgotten. Weren't the first 48 hours when you had to find someone? Or what? Sasuke was dead? Naruto felt queasy.

Naruto spent the last few weeks, months hating the Uchiha who had ruined his relationship with Sakura. Despite this, Sasuke was all he could think about these days. It was a confusing feeling.

As for the soccer team, they played on without Sasuke. Kiba happily took the captain position. The only people who seemed affected by the Uchiha's disappearance were Suigetsu, Karin and Juugo. Last week, for instance, Juugo was suspended for throwing a chair across the room during one of his tantrums. 

Was anybody looking for Sasuke?

That question plagued Naruto. So much so that he was getting less and less sleep as the days went by. The fact that just four people seemed to care about the disappearance of Sasuke disturbed him. How lonely.

It was that thought that made Naruto blow off Chouji's after-practice plans and tail Suigetsu.

"Suigetsu," Naruto called out when he saw the shark-faced boy waiting at a bus stop. He reached out on a whim, unsure of what response he'd get for snooping.

Suigetsu turned, his sullen face briefly adopted the usual mischievous grin. "Blondie."

Naruto shrugged his duffel bag higher on his shoulder. "Any news on Sasuke?" The question rolled off the tongue awkwardly, all attempts at being casual failed.

"I didn't know you two were close," Suigetsu eyed Naruto suspiciously.

"We aren't," Naruto supplied sheepishly. "I just...It pisses me off that nobody cares." Suigetsu seemed surprised at the earnestness of the response.

A sardonic laugh escaped Suigetsu, "People don't care about kids like Sasuke."

"What?" Naruto barked. "Fuck you."

"It's true. They just want kids like us to disappear."

"That's...a little dramatic don't you think?"

"Maybe, but you're the one acting surprised that nobody is looking for him." Suigetsu's dark grin was back on his face.

This was certainly not the direction he was expecting the conversation to go. "They had posters everywhere."

"Appearances probably. The board wants to keep the illusion that they care until it's socially acceptable to stop trying, forget and move on."

Naruto groaned impatiently. "Okay, okay, adults are trash. Got it. Now, do you know where he could be?"

Suigetsu cocked his head to the side and scoffed "If I did, then what? We go on a rescue mission?" 

"We'd go to the police," Naruto offered lamely.

"I told the cops all I know. Still no Sasuke."

"Well, let's go to Kakashi."

Suigetsu snorted derisively, "He was the one who had the police question me." 

Naruto groaned in frustration, violently brushing his fingers through his hair. "Fine. Will you tell me what you know?"

"For a price," Suigetsu cackled.

Naruto gawked, "He's your friend! You should want to find him."

"You didn't even hear the deal," Suigetsu whined. "You just have to buy me dinner." 

"Fine!" Naruto groaned impatiently and begrudgingly fished his frog wallet from his bag. "Let's go down the street to the diner, I can afford that."

Konoha Diner was the city's most popular. Naruto always thought it was trying too hard though. The establishment was decked out in all the cliched red and chrome decor. This was also Chouji's favorite spot.

As Naruto and Suigetsu walked to their booth, pink caught Naruto's eye. Sakura was sitting in the first booth, her homework stretched in front of her with a cup of coffee steaming next to the haphazardously placed school materials. Her hair was different - shorter but wild as if she cut it herself.

"S-sakura?" Naruto couldn't help but call out to her.

Jade eyes looked up, they were red, puffy and wet. She looked like utter shit. "Naruto?" Her voice was faint as if she was scared of his reaction.

"Holy shit, Pinkie, what's wrong with you?" Suigetsu gasped in a weird mixture of a taunt and actual concern. She had to look really terrible if even Suigetsu couldn't commit to his usual demeaning jokes.

Sakura's dazed look transformed into unmistakeable anger. "What the fuck do you think?" Naruto felt like his eyebrows were going to disappear into his hairline. Sakura could be terrifying when she was angry. Somehow, he managed to forget this fact in the months they no longer talked.

Sakura made eye contact with Naruto and her posture shrank as if she was trying to disappear into the cushion of her booth. "N-naruto," she began but her voice died, clearly not knowing what to say.

Suigetsu scratched his head, genuinely confused at the distressed state of the girl. 

Sakura's eyes flicked to the shark boy. "I'm so worried about Sasuke," she breathed.

Then Suigetsu did something that Naruto couldn't quite comprehend. He slid into the booth across from the pinkette. Naruto stared slackjawed. 

"This brings back memories, huh?" Suigetsu grinned mischievously and patted the seat next to him with a look at Naruto.

Suddenly, the curiosity of seeing Sakura dissipated and was replaced with impatience. He wasn't here for a lunch table reunion. "Suigetsu," Naruto growled warningly, "We're here for a reason."

This peaked Sakura's interest and this time when her eyes met Naruto, that startled look was overtaken by intrigue. "Are you going to find Sasuke?"

It was Suigetsu's turn to look exasperated, "What the hell...We're NOT going on a rescue mission."

"Nobody else is looking for him!" Sakura barked back. It seemed all three of the teens came to the same conclusion. No adults were searching for Sasuke. Well, except Kakashi.

The waitress stopped by, pulling a notepad from her apron. "Everything okay here?" The three teens nodded casually, eager polite smiles plastered on their faces. "Good, now let's start with some drinks. Or are you two ready to order?"

Suigetsu and Naruto set right into ordering, though Naruto couldn't help but glare at Suigetsu as he ordered multiple dishes - taking advantage of free dinner.

"Anyways," Suigetsu started, "What makes you guys think I'm the one to drag into your little mission?"

"You seem close," Sakura observed, anxiously clicking her pen against the notebook opened in front of her.

"Uh, you're the one who dated him," Suigetsu countered.

Sakura rolled her eyes and sucked her tongue against the back of her teeth. "While cheating on me with you." Suigetsu looked shocked for a moment, clearly not expecting Sakura to know. "I'm not an idiot."

"This is really fucked up," Naruto breathed, suddenly feeling flustered at the tension between the two.

"Yeah, really," Suigetsu snorted and gulped down his water like a man lost in the desert.

Sakura took a deep breath before continuing. "Moving on," commandeering the conversation back on track, "Suigetsu, you've known Sasuke for a long time, right?"

"Uh, I guess. Since Middle School."

"You have to know something helpful," Sakura urged, "anyone he'd stay with or something."

"I don't know," Suigetsu groaned in a way that suggested that he actually did know something. "We can't just go poking around."

"Poking around where?" Naruto prodded.

"Listen," Suigetsu looked around nervously, "When I met Sasuke we were in a...not so great situation. Police, lawyers, politicians, the whole lot were involved."

Sakura pursed her lips, disbelievingly. "This sounds more like a movie than in real life."

"Well, fucking yeah. Why do you think nobody talks about it? Because it makes us look fucking nuts."

"Uh, I mean, you guys do a pretty good job of looking nuts on your own even without your conspiracy theories," Naruto half-joked, thinking of the strange dynamics between the group of friends.

Suigetsu looked like his fingers were itching to pull his hair out. "Seriously, Sasuke could be way gone if he's where I think he is."

"Fucking spill the beans already!" Naruto groaned impatiently.

Abruptly, the waitress showed up with a disapproving look on her face. She definitely overheard Naruto. "Alright, food's here," she said with an edge to her tone and placed the plates of food in front of the teens.

Suigetsu stabbed a french fry aggressively into a lump of ketchup. "Sasuke and Karin will kill me if they know I told you so don't say a fucking word," he pointed the fry at them threateningly. 

Sakura and Naruto both nodded eagerly in a silent pact of secrecy.

"Karin and Sasuke were swept up in that Otogakure trafficking raid."

Naruto scratched his head sheepishly, clearly confused. "Trafficking?"

Sakura's eyes flitted to the blond, an eyebrow raised. "Are you serious? Trafficking is like a prostitution ring."

"Yeah, something like that." Suigetsu sighed. Naruto just stared between the two. "Karin was the bottom," when neither Naruto nor Sakura looked like they understand he continued, "A bottom is a girl who convinces other girls to turn out and shit. Basically a wifey supervisor."

"Oh my god, it's like you're talking a different language," Sakura hissed. "What do you mean?"

"Okay, okay, relax," Suigetsu raised his hands defensively, "Years back, you had to have heard about the trafficking ring busted in Otogakure. Well, that's the part of the circuit they were in the most."

"This is insane," Naruto moaned. 

"You're telling me," Suigetsu snorted, sipping his water.

"Wait, so are you implying Sasuke is back in a trafficking ring?" Sakura's voice cracked, tears welling up in her eyes.

"No," Suigetsu shook his head confidently. "I mean, it's really doubtful. Most of the pimps from back then are in jail and Konoha isn't really on the circuit."

"So, how is this supposed to help us then?" Naruto sighed, leaning back dejectedly against his seat.

"While we were there, a man took interest in Sasuke." 

"Who?" Sakura and Naruto both leaned over at the same time to ask, desperately.

"I'm not saying his fucking name out loud," Suigetsu hissed, urging them to keep their voices down.

"Well, why do you think Sasuke is with him?" Naruto urged.

"He, uh, took a liking to Sasuke. He's a doctor and so he wasn't wrapped up in the bust. I think the guy who took those pictures was him."

Naruto hummed in thought before asking the obvious, "Well, where is this guy?"

"If I knew, the cops probably would have found Sasuke by now, wouldn't they?" Suigetsu smirked. He took a long sip of water before continuing. 

"Does he practice at a hospital? If you know his name couldn't you look him up?" Sakura asked but knew the answer before she even asked.

"Yeah but he doesn't go by his real name."

"This is so fucking useless," Naruto groaned.

"I told you I don't know shit!" Suigetsu hissed.

"Naruto's grandma is the lead trauma surgeon at Konoha Hospital."

"Yeah and how is that supposed to be helpful?" Naruto grumbled, stabbing a fry with his fork.

Suigetsu's lips formed an 'o' shape, his sharp canine revealed. "Shit." He rubbed his hands down his face dramatically. "You two are going to get me killed."

"It's really that dangerous?" Sakura asked, her tone doubtful.

"I'm a loose end," Suigetsu looked around as if someone was going to pop out of nowhere and murder him. "Juugo and I worked with the doctor. Juugo went through puberty early, he's a fucking giant so they had him as some sort of child soldier or some shit."

"Usually, you'd disappear once you no longer were useful. The doctor took an interest in me and Juugo for other reasons."

"Okay, we get it. Now, why are you suddenly freaking out?"

"I know how you can find the Doctor." Suigetsu looked like he'd rather do anything in the world other than telling them the rest. "Fuck, I'm so done for," he whined. "You're going to get me killed."

With a roll of her eyes, Sakura prodded, "Just spit it out!"

"This guy, Kabuto, is a nurse at Konoha Hospital. He used to steal supplies and shit for the Doctor. Doc's really sick so the two were inseparable from each. Kabuto supplied the medicine."

Sakura's face set into determination. "Naruto, you have to find out when his shift is. Then, we'll follow Kabuto back to Orochimaru."

Naruto nodded vigorously, "Yeah. Suigetsu, does he have his last name?"

"That's all I goddamn know and don't expect me to come along with you guys on this stupid suicide mission!" Suigetsu whined.

Naruto paid the bill and all 3 teens left. Suigetsu headed to his bus stop but Sakura stopped Naruto from following with a tight hold to his wrist. "Naruto," her voice was soft, hesitant. When he turned to look at her, those jade eyes were moist but resolutely staring into his own. "I'm so sorry."

"What?" Naruto asked, surprised by the apology and scared that his she would start to cry. "It's nothing," he faked a grin and anxiously scratched the back of his head.

Sakura bit her lip and pulled her tearful gaze away. "It's not nothing," Sakura's voice cracked, "I was awful. I shouldn't have said those things. I didn't mean them."

"Seriously, don't worry about it, Sakura," Naruto's fake grin only grew bigger and he turned away to walk off. The grip on his wrist strengthens and yanks him back. Sakura was always the stronger of the two.

"I was so terrible to you," Sakura continued as if Naruto wasn't actively trying to escape. The way her voice cracked and the situation was just too awkward for the blond.

"S-sakura, it's really not-" 

"Naruto," Sakura's stern voice cut him off. "Why won't you be honest? Aren't you angry at me?"

The blond took a deep breath and finally turned to face his old crush. It was so hard not to fall back into step with her like old times. He grew up chasing after her, mesmerized by how sweet and kind she seemed. That all seemed to vanish months ago. "Of course I was. We were best friends and you left me with a fucking slur!"

Sakura flinched, taking a step back. Naruto almost felt guilty, she looked like a spooked animal. "I knew Sasuke was cheating on me," her voice was thick and the tears finally started to roll down her cheeks. "I was so insecure, I ended up blaming you for everything. I'm so, so sorry for not listening to you and calling you...that."

That was that. Naruto couldn't stay angry at Sakura. With a playful grin and nudge, Naruto forgave her. "You can pay me back once we find Sasuke."


	10. Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait, I've been having some mental health issues and I yet again moved across the country (great timing yay!).
> 
> Most of the notes will be at the end because I don't want to spoil anything! Italicized text is a flashback at the beginning.
> 
> CW: There's some blood and violence in this chapter. Nothing too explicit though. Also a gender slur at the end. Sasuke meets with a client but there are no details.

_It was already dark when Sasuke was dropped off by his classmate's mom from his soccer game. As he opened the door, Itachi's name was on his lips - ready to confront him for yet again breaking his promise of watching the game. However, the house was eerily silent._

_There were small warning signs that made Sasuke's skin crawl. There were dishes laying neglected in the sink, his father's business jacket lay haphazardly on a kitchen chair. His mother was borderline compulsive about the tidiness of the house. "Mom?" He called out, unable to ease the shakiness. The house remained silent._

_There was a loud thud from upstairs, Sasuke almost jumped out of his skin. "Itachi?"_

_Sasuke's legs seemed to move on their own as he went upstairs. He worriedly reminded himself of the time he almost called the police when his mother took too much time at the neighbor's borrowing ingredients for her cake. It was rainy and he swore he heard someone walking around in the house (he'd later find out it was just the creaking of their old house). His mother chastised him, complaining that they'd be fined for calling the cops for no reason. He didn't want to make that mistake again._

_When he finally made it up the stairs to his parent's bedroom, it felt like his whole body was vibrating with nerves. It took everything in him to push open the slightly ajar door. The room was dark, darker than anything Sasuke experienced. Timidly, he stepped into the bedroom. There was a disgusting squelch as he stood in something thick and wet._

_Standing behind the bed looking down with focus was Itachi, even in the dark Sasuke could recognize him. "Itachi, what's going on?" Sasuke called, the shakiness of his voice increased tenfold._

_Itachi ignored him still staring down, focused on whatever was on the floor. Sasuke moved to see what he was staring at but instantly regretted it. His mouth opened to scream but no sound came out. His ears were ringing and he couldn't even tell if he was breathing anymore._

_His parents lay in a gruesome unmoving pile on the floor. What he stepped in earlier was the pool of their blood. "They're dead," Itachi whispered but there was no horror or panic in his voice, it was as if he was just stating a casual fact like the sky was blue. There was a twitch in his lips as if he was holding back a smile._

_"H-how?" Sasuke sobbed, not understanding what happened. Itachi still didn't acknowledge him. It took Sasuke moments to notice the large knife gently resting in his brother's grasp. Itachi's body was soaked in blood._

_"I-itachi?" Sasuke felt like he'd pass out. Slowly, Itachi moved his bloodshot gaze toward him. The way he looked at him was calculating. Bile rose to Sasuke's throat as his brain connected the dots. Would his older brother who he loved so much kill him too? "Y-you-" he was terrified to even say the words. Itachi just nodded._

_It was like something broke inside of him, a floodgate of emotions burst through with rage at the forefront. Sasuke rushed at his older brother without thinking, he was so angry he just knew he wanted to hurt him. With ease, Itachi simply knocked the wind out of him with a punch to the gut._

_"Stupid little brother," Itachi's voice was as cool and collected as always. He crouched by his younger brother's slumped form. "It's over," Itachi's whisper had its usual soothing tone to it as Sasuke lost consciousness._

\--

A booming knock flooded the house as Sasuke lounged on a couch, idly staring at the television screen without really registering what exactly was happening. As a rule, Sasuke never answered the door. The risks of doing so in Orochimaru's house seemed too high. While significantly less so than the last time Sasuke was involved with him, Orochimaru still hung around with some suspicious characters.

"Sasuke, open the damn door," A familiar voice called from outside. The pounding of his fist against the door only grew more violent.

Light flooded the hallway as Sasuke complied and opened the door. He had yet to turn on any lights so far today in the house so he was almost blinded by the stark contrast.

"Shouldn't you have a key?" Sasuke asked with a hand on his hip, knowing full well Orochimaru took back the spare key and gave it to him. He just liked watching Kabuto writhe in jealousy as if they were kids starving for attention from a parent.

"Fuck you," Kabuto growled. When Sasuke was a kid, Kabuto always hid behind a fake layer of neutral politeness. That mask was gone now it seemed,

Sasuke returned to the couch where he was lounging before in the dark. Much to his dismay, Kabuto followed.

"You have a client in an hour. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, yeah," Sasuke groaned dismissively. He was far from it, he hadn't even bothered to get dressed yet today.

"I'm serious, if you want to stay here you have to earn your keep."

"Fuck you," Sasuke grunted and brooded his way up to his room.

There were strange rustling noises coming from his window but Sasuke dismissed it to be the shuffling of leaves in the wind. Slowly, Sasuke shrugged out of his clothes, leaving an untidy pile at his feet. He was in the middle of picking through the few clothes given to him by Orochimaru when he heard the groaning of his bedroom window being shoved open.

"Jesus, why are you naked?!" A familiar, obnoxious voice shrieked. Kneeling on the floor beneath the now open window was a very shocked Naruto, dressed in all black.

Sasuke nearly stumbled backward into the closet. "I'm changing," he nearly stuttered, as if he was the one who should be explaining himself. "Wait, why the fuck are you here?"

The question seemed to snap Naruto back to reality. "I'm here to bring you back," the blond stood to his feet and started grabbing at a set of clothes to shove in Sasuke's arms. "Now, put some clothes on and let's go before nerdy four-eyes catches me."

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Sasuke hissed and shoved Naruto away. That look of shock and confusion lit up the blond's deep blue eyes, brows furrowed.

For a moment, Naruto faltered. As if he hadn't thought of Sasuke rejecting his offer of rescue as a possibility. Sasuke smirked, lazily pulling on a pair of tight black jeans. "Wait, you really thought you were going to rescue me?" Sasuke snickered, "from what?"

Naruto stood there, floundering, a t-shirt clutched to his chest. Clearly unsure of what to say, not anticipating Sasuke's derision.

"I left on my own," Sasuke's voice was its usual taunting sneer. "Why would I come back?"

"Kakashi's so worried about you!" Naruto spat, stumbling over the words in his hurry to convince the Uchiha. "Everyone's looking for you."

"Please," Sasuke drawled darkly, "if you can find me, surely Kakashi would be able to." He shrugged a plain white t-shirt over his head idly, as if they were just two friends chatting about the latest video game.

Naruto's face was growing redder by the second, a feeling of satisfaction rose in Sasuke. "Y-you really want to stay here?" Naruto gasped out, his words stumbling out awkwardly in desperation. "Suigetsu told me everything! Why would you do this?" The words seemed to surprise even the blond. Clearly, that was supposed to be a secret. The idiot could never keep his mouth shut.

A cold sensation washed over Sasuke, as if he just swallowed a handful of ice cubes. Faintly, he heard Kabuto calling his name from downstairs. "You don't know shit," Sasuke growled, his voice laced with an anger Naruto hadn't heard from the usually indifferent teen. "Get the fuck out of here you moron!"

"Not unless you come back with me!" Naruto dug his feet in.

Sasuke grabbed Naruto's wrist with surprising strength. He made to pull the idiot to the window but unsurprisingly Naruto was too sturdy. "I'm not going back."

"Why not?"

"There's nothing back there for me," Sasuke breathed.

Turmoil turned the usually bright blue eyes into a stormy cobalt. Sasuke couldn't hold back the roll of his eyes as he noticed moisture dance in the taller teen's eyes. He was always crying it seemed.

"I don't know," Naruto choked, "it's just not the same."

"Yeah, okay, I'll just return then," Sasuke's voice drawled sarcastically.

"You bastard!" Naruto nearly yelled, though apparently, he was being careful of his volume for once. The next thing Sasuke knew the back of his knee hit his mattress and he tumbled backward, the blond looming over him.

Tears that weren't his own fell on Sasuke's face. The ice cubes were back in his stomach. Naruto was openly crying. "I-idiot," Sasuke sneered. "I'm not coming back."

"Kakashi doesn't even leave his house anymore," Naruto whimpered. "We've lost all our games. Juugo is one freak out away from going to juvie."

"Why should I care?" Sasuke spat back.

"Because it's all your fault!" Naruto's voice was cracked, almost unrecognizable. He looked like he was one insult away from punching him. Instead, a finger pressed into the junction of Sasuke's neck and shoulder ripping a surprised groan out of the smaller teen. "What the fuck is this?"

The idiot found his new brand, 3 tomoe arranged in a circle. "I don't have time for this. Kabuto is going to come in here and kill both of us." Naruto visibly flinched at those words.

Kabuto's footsteps were heard stomping up the stairs, obviously pissed that Sasuke was taking so long. "Get out," Sasuke hissed and kneed the blond in the crotch while he was distracted.

"I'm serious, you're going to get us both killed," Sasuke whispered urgently and pushed Naruto toward the window. The usually tanned face seemed to lose all its color at the urgency and the sudden banging at the door.

"I'll be back," Naruto whispered back, already one leg out the window.

Sasuke sucked his tongue against the roof of his mouth in annoyance, "Don't bother," and pushed Naruto the rest of the way out with a satisfying thud.

The implications of Naruto finding him made him nauseous. Sasuke could only assume that he'd go straight to Kakashi and the police. Orochimaru was going to be pissed. There was little time to worry though as Kabuto unlocked the door and barged in.

"Let's go. We can't leave him waiting," Kabuto hissed, not questioning Sasuke's disheveled look. He threw an oversized jumper at the scrawny teen. "Put this on."

Sasuke clenched the faded yellow jumper in his hands, "It makes me look like a child," he grumbled pathetically. His brain felt jumbled like he was just zapped with electricity and couldn't band together complete thoughts.

"That's the point," Kabuto barked. He grabbed Sasuke's wrist and pulled him down the stairs haphazardly.

The ride to the upscale hotel was tense. Kabuto was seething over Sasuke's attitude. Apparently, the john he was about to meet was a politician with significant pull. Orochimaru was looking to get in his favor. Being late was not an option, which was clear by the reckless driving on Kabuto's part.

Usually, Kabuto or someone would escort him to the client's room. This time though, he only received a room number and a shove toward the elevator. Apparently, this client wanted to be as anonymous as possible and his prestige made Orochimaru forego any precaution.

Feeling like a child in his oversized yellow jumper, Sasuke knocked on the door hesitantly.

A tall, hulking man answered. The older man had many unique features. From a large eyepatch that covered a good portion of his face to the 'x' shaped scar on his chin, there was nothing exceedingly attractive about this person. Although, that wasn't necessarily unique.

The man's voice was deep but he was strangely doting when he talked in a way that didn't match his personality. Definitely a sleazy politician. The way he acted and addressed him was off-putting as if they had known each other for years. Every word was too casual, too familiar yet Sasuke was sure they had never met before.

Other than that, the interaction was business as usual. Unnamed man was wearing the white hotel robe and seemed to overly enjoy the chore of unclothing Sasuke. The young teen found himself pressed against the headboard, a rough hand grasped his jaw. A hint of a smirk or conniving smile danced behind that one uncovered eye as he peered into Sasuke's face.

"You look just like your brother when he was your age."

Those words cut through Sasuke like a butcher knife - messy and violent. They ripped his emotions and mind from his body, leaving behind a husk of a human. There was no space for what should have been a thousand questions like "How do you know Itachi?" No comprehensive thoughts surfaced, just a floating numbness.

Such a simple statement broke Sasuke in a way that nothing else had before. It was as if he was dunked in water - sound and vision distorted. He vaguely processed the hand around his throat, constricting. Was he breathing? He couldn't even tell as he felt the edges of his sanity fray more and more.

It felt like the man was on top of him for hours. He had so many unrelated though. Sasuke found himself thinking about how as a child, his family spent every summer on the beach. The fancy hotels, much like this one, were his favorite part. Everything was so clean and bright. He even shared a bed with Itachi. The day would always end with the two in bed and Itachi telling him weird, funny stories as he fell asleep to the sound of waves crashing on sand. He never expected that hotels would have a different, darker significance to him as he grew older.

A harsh knock on the door echoed. Sasuke barely registered it. The Unnamed Man simply ignored it at first but it grew incessant.

"Housekeeping," a feminine voice called sweetly from the door. If Sasuke had been in a more aware state, he'd have recognized who it was and tried to take back the man's attention.

The man on top of him growled, letting the younger boy slip down to the bed. "It says do not disturb!" He yelled petulantly.

There was a pause. "It's urgent," the woman returned, the sweetness dialed down this time.

"One minute!" Unnamed man's voice was angry but there was an underlying sense of panic in it. He looked down at Sasuke, laying eerily still on the bed exposed.

For a second, Sasuke thought the man would kill him. He looked angry enough, distraught enough too. Was that the only way out of this?

The man didn't kill him though. Instead, he grabbed Sasuke by his arm and pulled him to the balcony and shut the door.

Humiliated, Sasuke hunched down on his haunches. The night air was cool on his exposed skin, goose bumps formed. He tried not to think about what would happen if someone saw him there, he was high enough and the hotel was dark enough though that it was the least of his worries.

From inside, he could only hear the muffled sounds of the Unnamed Man opening the door. The shout of "Who the fuck are you?" was loud enough for him to decipher though.

Sasuke's heart squeezed, was he caught? What would happen to him if this was another raid? "Fuck," he groaned, peering down from the balcony rails as if contemplating whether or not he could make it down alive. He couldn't, he was on the 20th floor.

There was a crash, incoherent screams and then a thump.

The voices were muffled and he could no longer hear the Unnamed Man. Sirens approached from a distance and he could hear that feminine voice worriedly muttering just in front of the balcony door.

Sasuke nearly jumped out of his skin when the balcony door opened. None of this felt real anymore.

"Oh thank God!" The same feminine voice from earlier cried out, kneeling down to make sure he was alive. Her hand reached out as if she was going to check his pulse, he slapped it away instinctively.

"What. The. Fuck." Sasuke spat. Of all people, it was Sakura. Why was she here? Why were her face and chest covered in blood? Everything still felt surreal. His throat felt like there was a never-ending pressure on it. As if some invisible person had their hand wrapped around it, squeezing.

Another person stood behind Sakura, "Oh thank the gods. I thought we killed an innocent man."

"...Killed?" Sasuke choked out. Sakura killed the Unnamed Man?

Sakura huffed, tears in her eyes. "We did NOT kill him, Naruto!" She looked like she was going to either pass out or punch him, whatever came first.

"I dunno, he looks pretty dead." Naruto's voice shaky from nerves.

"He's just knocked out!" Sakura said desperately as if convincing herself. "Do I need to remind you that he was going to kill us? Now, be useful and get Sasuke some clothes. It's cold out here."

"The cops are coming," Sasuke said plainly, staring down from the balcony toward where he heard the sirens.

"I know, I called them," Sakura's voice was thick and without warning she clumsily vomited over the balcony railing.

"Oh my god, now we're going to be in even more trouble!" Naruto yelled, throwing the hotel bathrobe at Sasuke.

Sakura collapsed next to Sasuke, glaring at Naruto. "I think a little vomit is the least of our worries."

Sasuke was sure that this wasn't real. He couldn't even bring himself to ask how they got here or how they even knew he was here. Where was Kabuto? Orochimaru was going to be so pissed.

"Should we run?"

"We didn't do anything wrong. Plus there are cameras everywhere." Sakura sighed, she went to cradle her head in her hands but pulled back once she felt the blood. For a minute it looked like she was going to vomit again. "Can you text Suigetsu?"

"Suigetsu's here?" Sasuke asked on impulse.

"He drove us here, he's waiting a few blocks down."

Suddenly, Sasuke felt like screaming. For the first time in days - months even, emotions felt like they were ripping through his body. His head felt like it was going to split open. He covered his face with his hands, curling into himself. "Get him out of here," his voice was small, quiet but demanding. Then just like that, he went numb again - back to feeling surreal.

"Yeah, I'll tell him to go," Naruto pulled his phone from his pocket compliantly without question.

"You don't think he'll wake up, do you?" Sakura asked worriedly, peeking into the room from the balcony. "What's taking them so long?" She groaned.

"Fuck, you're right. Let's get out of here." Naruto helped Sakura up. He turned to Sasuke next but he was already standing with his hand on the handle.

"I can't stick around for the cops to show up," Sasuke decided finally. He had no idea where he'd go. It was unlikely Orochimaru would take him back now.

Sakura sighed, "You need to go to the hospital."

"I'm fine," Sasuke growled and slipped through the sliding glass door. Naruto and Sakura followed.

The hotel room was still dark but there was a weird pungent copper-like smell. "Shit, we should've turned on the lights. This is so spooky." Naruto whined.

The Unnamed Man was laying next to the bed. From the balcony, only his feet were visible. Sasuke grabbed his clothes from the floor before moving toward the door.

"Where will you go?" Naruto asked, his voice was tense as if he was holding back what he really wanted to say.

Sasuke replied honestly, "I don't know."

"So, you're just going to run away again?"

"I don't have time to debate this with you, I'm leaving."

Naruto cursed incoherently. "You fucking bastard. After everything we went through-"

"I didn't ask you to come here," Sasuke interjected, "in fact, it would have made my life easier if you hadn't." He gestured to the unconscious body.

Sakura seemed speechless, tears spilling down her bloodstained cheeks as she watched the two.

"Just come back! What about Konoha is so terrible? Why can't you just-"

"You won't understand," Sasuke interrupted again, his hand on the doorknob. "You live in this weird happy-go-lucky world where everyone is wonderful and your biggest worry is becoming captain of the soccer team. I can't live like that."

Sakura ran forward to stop Sasuke. At first glance, Sasuke thought that she tripped. However, the pink haired girl let out a terrified scream as she looked back to see her ankle was pulled by the Unnamed Man.

"You fucking cunt," the man spat through the blood in his mouth. He looked crazed, blood soaking his eyepatch.

Sakura struggled but his grip was unwavering and simply pulled her closer to him until his other hand grasped her throat. He pulled them both into a sitting position as if Sakura was merely a doll. Naruto stood behind them, frozen, his face was the palest Sasuke's ever seen.

There seemed to be no way anyone in the room was getting out of this. So many factors were in play. Sasuke was surprised none of the actual hotel staff came to check on the noise yet. He shook those thoughts from his head as he returned his focus to Sakura, whose hands helplessly pulled at the one around her throat.

Naruto seemed to snap back to his senses as he recklessly flung himself at the much larger man. The three were now just a blur of kicks, punches and flailing limbs. Sakura was thrown like a doll against the wall, knocked unconscious. Sasuke was relieved when he saw her breathing.

It would have been the perfect opportunity to slip away. Sasuke couldn't help that twisted part of himself that goaded him to leave.

Now with a free hand, the Unnamed Man used his significant size difference to pin the blond underneath him. The first punch landed with a thickening crack that made Sasuke's stomach clench.

"Fuck," Sasuke gasped as he looked around for anything that he could use as a weapon. His eyes caught a heavy-looking terracotta flower pot resting on the window.

The Unnamed Man was focusing so much of his rage on the blond that he seemed to forget about Sasuke. Being invisible was never so convenient. The pot was heavy in his hands and it took so much effort to get it over his head that he was sure Naruto would be dead before he could let it fall on the man's head.

There was a moment of doubt right before dropped the pot. What if it missed and hit Naruto instead? He didn't have time to think as the door to the room burst open and cops charged in with guns drawn. The noise startled him so bad that the pot slipped from his fingers and shattered against the Unnamed Man's head.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took forever for me to write due to some severe anxiety and depression. Let me know what you're thinking! Is it too dramatic? Not enough drama? 
> 
>  
> 
> I'll try to get the wrap-up chapter up quickly. I don't know if I'll post the sequel right away or maybe I'll change the pace and write a oneshot with less drama and angst than this one. I don't want to spoil anything so I'll post a description of the sequel at the end of next chapter.
> 
> :) As always, thank you so much for reading. I've gotten so much great, encouraging feedback and that means so much to me!


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